


Road Trip

by MaJackles



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Adventure, Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-08
Updated: 2015-04-07
Packaged: 2018-03-21 20:16:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 46,981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3703899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaJackles/pseuds/MaJackles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five ladies set out on the fan road trip of a lifetime, visiting places from their favorite book series: Supernatural. Driving in a replica car from the stories, the girls are headed for the adventure of a lifetime and a few huge surprises along the way. Come along with them as they visit The Mystery Spot, Lawrence, The Asylum and many more spots ending at Singer's Salvage.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Set Up

**Author's Note:**

> I think we can all relate to one or more of the girls in this story as we are all fans of Supernatural!

~1~ The Set Up

"Hey Dee! Dee!"

"What?!" I was spending the summer with my parents. They were getting on in years and I was currently between jobs, so they let me stay at their place in exchange for doing some work around the house. My current project was redoing their grungy bathroom. I don't think it had seen fresh paint since they moved into the place 23 years ago.

"Dee, come down here! You have a visitor!" My father was bellowing up the stairs at me. Why walk up here and get me when yelling so the whole neighborhood could hear would suffice?

I came out of the bathroom to see my mother folding laundry on her bed. "Really mom? You haven't broken him of this habit yet?" I asked her with a smile and an eye roll.

"Now, Natalie. You know he probably hasn't even gotten out of his tv chair either." We shared a chuckle and I went down to see who was here. I couldn't imagine who it could be, as I just got into town last week and hadn't really gone out and visited any of the old haunts yet.

I got to the bottom of the steps and my father, still in his tv chair, waved toward the front door without ever removing his eyes from his game. It appeared to be golf today. Yawn. I went to the front door and peeked out through the screen door. There was a guy sitting on our front steps with his back to me. I knew right away who it was. I practically launched myself through the screen door and jumped on his back, almost taking him to the ground. "Nicky!"

"Hey, whoa! Simmer down, there, Lil Dee!" I let go of him and he stood, turned, and gave me a huge hug, lifting me off the ground. Nick was my cousin from my father's Italian side of the family and his father was the one who dubbed me with the moniker 'lil Dee'. My uncle could never remember my name, but knew my mom's name was Doris, hence the little D.

Nick is only two years older than me and, growing up, I thought he was a god. He has always been the coolest thing on two feet. Leather coats, cool cars, and shades. Blasting the rock and roll and not giving a care about who it bothered. Easily six feet tall or more, dark hair, and tattoos. Some would say he was hot, but I could never look at him like that. He was family, after all.

We never hung out in quite the same circles, though. He was a bad boy and I was a bit of a geek, but he was always there for me. Always stuck up for me if I was getting bullied and was never afraid of being seen in public with me. He treated me like the kid sister he never had. He had no siblings and often found himself hanging out with the wrong crowd. He's been busted a few times and even spent a year in juvey. We all suspect that he still makes his living a little off the grid, if you know what I mean. But we all turn a blind eye to it. I'm not talking murder or anything quite so hard core. Grand larceny, though, I'd wager. Some breaking and entering, etc.

"Lil Dee...how ya been? So good to see you! Wow, you've grown up! How long has it been?"

"More than ten years, Nicky. Too long." I went off to college and then straight to my first job up in Boston. We hadn't seen each other since my high school graduation.

"How long you here for?"

"All summer. My new job doesn't start until the last week of August."

"So where's that one going to take you?" He asked raising his one eyebrow. He knew it drove me crazy. I used to sit for hours, as a kid, trying to imitate it to no avail.

"Colorado State University." I said, beaming.

"Well, look at you! Listen, I can't stay long tonight. I'll be over on Saturday for a cook out, I think your Pop said. Right now, though, I just wanted to swing by and give you this." He hands me a big manilla envelope, but holds onto it, in my hand. "Before you open it, listen to me, okay?"

I look at the envelope and then up at him, curiosity plain on my face. "What's up?"

"I know how much it hurt you, when I didn't show for your graduation..."

"Nicky, that was over ten years ago! I think I'm over it." I smiled at him, unsure where this was going.

"I said to hear me out, now let me talk, Dee." He paused waiting to see if I was really going to be quiet and listen. When I didn't say anything, he continued. "Besides the graduation thing, I've hurt a lot of people in my life, let a lot of people down. I know I've disappointed you on more than one occasion, too. My business has been doing very well, lately, and I'm trying to make amends the only way I know how, to some of the people I've let down over the years. I don't shop. I don't gift wrap. I wouldn't presume to even have the slightest idea of what to buy you, anyway. So...I'm just going to give you some money..."

"No, Nicky. You don't have to do anything for me! You've always been there for me. You -" He put his finger to my lips, shushing me.

"I'm not doing this for you, Dee. Well I am, but...ugh I never know how to say what I want to say. I'm doing this for me, okay? I need to do this, okay? It's the only way I know how to say sorry, to say I..." His voice trailed off. "Listen...give it all to charity, if you want. Go on a huge shopping spree. Go on that crazy road trip you were ranting about not too long ago on Facebook. I don't care, just take it. Okay?"

I wanted to make some snarky remark about him being on Facebook, but the look he gave me was so intense. He was baring his soul to me in a way I have never seen him do, ever. For anyone. I knew, deep inside, that he felt he really needed to do this. I would only hurt him more if I refused his gift. Without even opening the envelope, I stepped in and hugged him to me. "Of course, Nicky. I love you too."

That was a month ago and the amount of money he had put in that envelope was obscene. Let's just say I was going to not only fund my road trip, but I was going to be taking four of my best friends along for the ride! We were all part of a Facebook group devoted to a particular book series. The series never did overly well, but garnered a huge underground, almost cult-like, following. We had all met online, talking, theorizing, ranting and raving about the books. We had even gotten together in person on three different occasions and had no end of fun.

The series, known as Supernatural, followed the lives of two brothers, Sam and Dean, as they hunted evil across the U.S. Things like wendigos, spirits and demons. I think Dean reminded me a lot of my cousin Nicky and that's why I fell in love with the books, initially. But, the great stories aside, it's the relationship the brothers had with each other that kept fans coming back for more. For a while, it seemed as if the author just quit writing. There was a huge break and the fans cried out for more. Then, about a year ago, there were suddenly a ton of new books available online. The story going around was that the author had passed away and they had found a huge cache of unpublished works when they auctioned off the contents of his house. They passed through several hands, until, finally they landed in the hands of someone with the funds to have them all published. The series now covered approximately a five year span in the brother's lives.

My road trip was a fan experience like no other. I planned on driving from one end of the country to other and back again, visiting some of the places from the books. The infamous Mystery Spot, in Florida, where Sam relived the same day well over a hundred times, with Dean dying in every one. Sam's college apartment in Palo Alto, where the brother's first join up and start the hunt. Lawrence, Kansas, where the boys were born and a demon stole their mother from them, and more. The trip was planned to end at Singer's Salvage in South Dakota. Of course, some of these places are probably only fantasy, but half the fun of a road trip was the journey itself.

None of this may sound all that exciting, but to fans of the books? This was a trip of a lifetime. I had bought airline tickets for three of my friends, to meet us in Florida. I was going to pick up my fourth friend on the drive down. The final piece to this great trip? Nicky promised me that he would get me the perfect car for our trip. I was to be packed and ready to go tomorrow morning and he'd have the car here at six a.m. Let the trip begin!


	2. The Car

~2~ The Car

...

I was as packed as I was going to get. I told all the girls to pack as light as possible, since we would have to fit all our stuff in one trunk. I had two duffel bags. One was an overnight bag with toiletries and one change of clothes. The other had more clothes in it. I waited out on the front porch in the dark. I had told Nicky I wanted to leave before the sun. He told me that was actually a much better idea and that he'd be here.

So here I sat, at 3:30 in the morning, feeling worried. I was just so sure the car Nicky was bringing was probably stolen. I was ready to turn him down as soon as he showed up. I know, accepting the money was probably no different. But I didn't want to get busted three states away for driving a stolen vehicle. Mom and Dad had already let me know I could use their pickup truck. It was an extended cab and could easily fit all five of us. So, I kept that on the back burner, while I awaited Nick's arrival.

As I sat there, nursing a cup of hot tea, I heard a rumbling engine coming down the road. Oh lord, did Nicky bring me a clunker? The engine roared as it got closer. It was either a car about to rumble itself to pieces, in desperate need of a new muffler, or it was a turbo charged hot rod, in which I couldn't possibly imagine fitting five women. I stood up and walked down to the edge of the road and leaned out into the street. I saw a pair of headlights make the corner and head in my direction. When he pulled past me and into the driveway, my jaw hit the ground with what, I could have sworn, was an audible plop.

The car looked like he had pulled it right out of the books themselves. It was a gleaming black '67 four door Impala. It was what the brothers drove in the Supernatural books. It was a thing of beauty. Nicky got out of the car, walked over and closed my mouth with his fingers. "You can close your mouth now."

"Oh my...wow... I mean..where...how..." Nicky laughed with delight.

"I know, right? I have a friend of a friend who knew what I was looking for and stumbled upon this a few days ago. Apparently, you aren't the only fan of the books."

"Apparently not! This car is amazing, Nicky! I love it! How did you get it?"

"We explained what you were trying to do and, well, everything has it's price. BUT, you are just borrowing it. That sweet ride is mine, now, and I do intend on you giving it back when your trip is over." He crossed his arms over his chest and looked at me with his best attempt at a fatherly scowl. It didn't work. I threw myself into his arms, hugging him tight. He chuckled into my hair.

"Nicky, I will love it and treat it like my own baby!"

He looked at me, raising that eyebrow again. "There something I should know about the last ten years? Baby?"

"You know what I mean!" I said, smacking him. He grinned, showing he was just teasing. "I remember all the stuff you taught me about cars, too."

"Oh great! So, you'll be calling me in a week about a flat tire."

"Hey! You taught me better than that! But, if it'll make you feel any better, Charlie has been helping her dad rebuild classic cars since she was old enough to walk."

"Hmm, makes me feel a bit better. Wait...Charlie is a girl? She works on cars?" His eyes lit up with that predatory look he gets when he's thinking naughty thoughts.

"Yes and if you can behave, maybe some day I'll introduce you to her."

"Man, you get to have all the fun." He made a pouty face and then grinned. "Have fun, Dee. That car is purring like a kitten. I really don't think you'll have any trouble with her." He leaned down and gave me a big hug and a noogie.

"Seriously, Nicky?" I gave him a light punch in the gut, grabbed the keys from his hand and was throwing my bags in the backseat before he could change his mind. As I was adjusting the seat and mirrors a thought occurred to me. "How are you going to get home?"

"Aww, I'm gonna sack out on the porch here. Gino's gonna swing by in a couple hours on his way to work and pick me up." With that, he walked up onto the porch, sprawled out on the porch swing, and closed his eyes. God, I love him.

I called out a goodbye as I backed out of the driveway and I was on my way. I reveled in the smell of the car. I dwelled on it for hours. Almost like old leather, gunpowder and alcohol.

I actually stopped for lunch around 11am. I couldn't bring myself to eat in the car. I'm sure that would pass with time, but right now, I couldn't. I ate quickly and was back on the road in no time. I loved to drive! I don't know what it was about it. The freedom of the open road, I suppose.

I arrived at Ella's house about twelve hours after my start. I pulled into her driveway to much the same look as I'm sure I gave Nicky when he arrived at my door. As I got out of the car, she had already regained her composure.

"How the actual fuck did you get that car?!"

I went over and hugged her. "A pleasure as always, El."

She hugged me back, smiled and said "Seriously, Dee, where'd you get this car?"

"My cousin, Nick. His buddy bought it from some fan of the books apparently. He's letting me borrow it for our trip. Pretty amazing, right?"

El walked around it, gazing at it with obvious love. She reached out to it, hesitated for a second, and then ran her fingers along the hood. "It's perfect! Dee, you rock!"

"Nah...Nicky does."

"The girls are going to freak!"

"I know right?" I yawned, then, right in El's face. She chuckled.

"Let's get you a pillow and hit the road."

"Are you sure you can get us the rest of the way without getting us lost?"

"Very funny. I'll have you know, I studied the map all day, awaiting your arrival. I can get us to the motel blindfolded."

"Okay, let's not do anything drastic! I'm pretty sure Nicky wouldn't be too happy if we wrecked his new baby."

We grabbed my bags, that I had thrown in to the back seat and, along with her bags, threw them in the trunk. She handed me a little giraffe pillow and shoved me towards the car.

"What's with the giraffe pillow?" I held it up, looking at her skeptically.

"Trust me, you will sleep like a babe with that." She held open the passenger door for me, I shook my head, grinned, and climbed in. She went around and climbed into the drivers seat and as she did so, handed a small collapsible cooler across to me.

"What's this?"

"Dinner, silly." As soon as she said it, my stomach growled and we both laughed. "Sounds like you're ready to eat too. Just a couple sandwiches, some fruit and drinks. Nothing big."

"What? No pie?" Her head snapped around and she burst out laughing. Dean is a huge pie freak. He would have been proud.

"What was I thinking? We'll get you some pie later. Let's hit the road."

\---------------------

I woke up sometime after midnight and it was very quiet. I realized we weren't moving and in fact the car wasn't even running. I sat up and looked around. We had stopped at a gas station. I climbed out to find El inside the station chatting up the attendant. They were consulting a map. I grinned to myself, stretched, and went to join them.

"Get us there blindfolded, huh?"

"I'll have you know, I am right on track! I was just confirming."

I looked over at the attendant, who held up his hands up in surrender. "She's telling the truth. She's got your trip down pat and that'll be $67.83 for the gas and Guinness."

"See?!" El exclaims, as she pulls out a card.

"No, no, El. This trip is my thing, remember?" I hand the guy some cash and he goes about making change.

"I could have paid for the beer, you know."

"I hope you don't plan on opening that in the car..."

"Of course not! This is to toast the start of our adventure, once we get to the motel. It is going to be a cheesy dive, right?"

At that, the cashier made a weird face and handed me my change. Some people will never understand.

We switch spots in the car and El pulls out of who knows where, a small case with cassette tapes in it. "Where'd you get that?"

"My foot just banged it. It was under the seat here. Good thing too. Now that you're up we need some tunes. Let's see here..."

"Please let it not be country music." I pleaded. "I will find a station on the radio before I let you pop in a tape of Willie Nelson."

"No worries, Dee. Whoever these belong to, they have great taste." She flipped through a few of them and finally pulled one out and stuck it into the cassette deck. As I pulled out onto the road and headed for the highway, the familiar guitar riff started up and we were both soon belting out 'Back In Black' as the engine roared and we picked up speed.

\------------------------

In what seemed like no time at all, we were pulling into the Oasis Motel. It seemed like something right out of the books. The only thing missing was the funky room divider. We had a room with two twins and tomorrow night we would have a second room and a roll away. Tomorrow we picked up the rest of the gang at the airport. Well, I guess it was already tomorrow, technically, but their flights didn't get in until late afternoon, so we had time to crash. We threw our bags on the table, fangirled a bit over the fact that the room had a mini kitchen (don't ask), and then quite literally collapsed onto the beds. I couldn't even tell you, later, if the beds were comfortable or not, that's how quickly I went under. We slept like the dead, the Guinness completely forgotten.


	3. The Gathering of The Flannel Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Just an FYI, 99% of the motels used in this fic are real, although I have never been to any of them and therefore descriptions are, for the most part, my own. The staff and happenings at said motels are made up and therefore should not paint a picture, good or bad, on the actual establishments. I have not been contacted by any of them and they are getting free advertising in my story...so, if they want to send me a small royalty for the advertising...I wouldn't turn it down! lol

~3~ The Gathering of The Flannel Five  
....

My phone started ringing, waking me from a sound slumber. I was disoriented, not remembering where I was. It took me a minute to remember crashing last night in the motel. I pulled out my phone. A text from Charlie, her flight had been delayed by an hour. I looked at the bedside clock. Two in the afternoon. Not a bad rest.

I took a moment to take in the room a little more. El was still asleep. The room was decorated in palm trees and coconuts. I half expected a coconut bikini to be hanging in the bathroom. Everything was in shades of greens and browns. Not horrible, really, although the shag carpet seemed a few decades out of date. I got up and noticed El's beer still sitting with our bags on the table. I took a moment to pop it in the fridge and then grabbed my bag and headed for the bathroom.

All in all, the shower was great and the room wasn't bad. I don't know what Sam and Dean are always complaining about. I chuckle to myself.

"What's so funny?" Comes a muffled question from El's general direction.

"Just thinking that staying in little places like this isn't half bad."

"Wait til the cockroaches come out to say hi..." El said, as she sat up, hair going in every direction. I looked around nervously. I had zero experience with cockroaches and really didn't want to start now.

"Thanks for that. Bathroom's all yours, by the way. I'm done."

"You leave me any warm water?" El asked with a grin.

"Well, it was still warm at the end of mine." I grinned back.

She headed in and I got out my Kindle to check arrival times for the rest of the gang. Looked like five and six pm. I texted them all and told them to look out for each other and that we would be by to pick them up at six thirty.

When El was done, we decided to wait on dinner and get something to eat with the girls. We were thoroughly disappointed that this motel didn't have magic fingers. I had been looking forward to trying it out. El rolled her eyes at me, but deep down, I knew she would have jumped right on that bed and given it a try too.

We hit the motel office to peruse the standard brochure rack of exciting tourist traps in the area. I picked up a brochure and held it out to El. "Check it out. The Broward County Mystery Spot, where the laws of physics have no meaning!"

El got a huge grin on her face. "Oooooooo, spooky!" She leaned in and looked at the brochure with me. It was in a little town about twenty minutes away. We were practically jumping up and down with excitement. I do believe I caught an eye roll from the desk clerk.

After gassing up, we headed out to the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport. We went over to the Palm Garage where we could park at an hourly rate. There were several terminals and getting past the limos, taxis, and hotel shuttle buses up at the gates would have been insane. El got a hold of Samantha and let her know roughly where we were. She told El that she had found Cat and they were still waiting to hook up with Charlie, but they would be out shortly.

"I can't believe we're really doing this, Dee. Thanks so much for this."

"Are you kidding? I would never want to do this alone! I gotta have my girls with me! Anyway, I can't believe we're really doing this, either." Just then my cell rang. I pulled it out of my purse, which was really more of a glorified wallet on a strap. I looked at who was calling and sighed.

"You going to answer that?"

"No. It's my dad. Probably checking up on me. Seriously, he does know I'm thirty-two years old, right? I'll just send him a quick text to let him know we made it okay and that he can stop worrying about me." I ignored the call and sent a quick text telling my dad not to worry, that we had made it down to Florida in two days without breaking any major land speed records, and to tell Nicky the car was cherry. He'd appreciate that term.

While I was texting my father, El got a text on her phone. "The girls are on their way out."

"Keep an eye on their faces and you'll get an idea of what you looked like when I showed up at your place." I said with a grin.

"Oh yeah. I bet."

I started up the car and pulled it around to the curb near the pedestrian airport entrance to the garage. There was a little area there for cars to pull up and load up luggage, etc. We were back about fifteen feet from the doors. We had waited about ten minutes when we saw them come through the doors. Samantha, or rather, Sammi, was tucking some sort of paperwork into her purse, which was the size of a small country. Charlie, short for Charlotta (silent H) was leaning into her, laughing about something. And Cat, short for Catherine, was busy scanning the parking garage, looking for us. As for us, well, we were practically bouncing in our seats with excitement and anticipation of the reaction to the car. And then it happened.

Cat scanned in our direction and froze. Without ever taking her eyes off the car, she reached back, blindly, and grabbed hold of a sleeve. Charlie looked down at Cat's hand on her arm and then up at her. When Sammi realized that Charlie was no longer talking to her, she also looked up. Then, almost simultaneously, Charlie and Sammi caught sight of the car as well. Three jaws hit the ground and three sets of eyes bugged out. El and I laughed and got out of the car.

I could see Cat silently mouthing something and I laughed again, smiling brightly at them. They seemed frozen to the spot, so we headed over to help them with their bags. "You really went all out, Dee." Sammi said, giving me a hug and then one for El.

"Fucking A, that car is a work of art!" Charlie suddenly blurted out. She went right past El and I to the car. She was lovingly running her hands across the hood and down the car to the trunk. We rolled our eyes and grabbed her bags, left behind in her haste to check out the car. "So, how does she run? Does she-"

I cut her off right there. "Whoa, Charlie! Don't start asking weird car questions! I know how to fix a flat, put gas in it, etc. The basics. She runs like a caged panther, wanting to get out and cut loose. Otherwise, I'll let you talk to Nicky some time about her."

"A caged panther... Nice description. I have to agree with Dee on that one." El added.

"Okay, okay. No more car questions. Do I get to drive her? Please say yes!" Charlie gave me her best puppy dog eyes.

I chuckled. "Everyone will get a chance who wants to. A girl's got to sleep at some point!"

"Has El driven it yet?" Cat asked, finally finding her voice. She came over, offering me a hug and whispering in my ear as she did so. "The car is beautiful, Dee. Thanks for this trip." I smiled at her.

"I have driven it. While Dee slept. We didn't get lost, either."

"Well, that IS impressive!" Cat responded.

"Fuck you." El said, laughing and giving Cat a hug. Charlie came over and gave us each hugs, then, as well.

"Well let's get your bags into the trunk and get a bite to eat." I offered, going back to open the trunk.

I slipped in the keys and popped up the lid. "Does it have a secret compartment too?" Sammi asked, somewhat tongue in cheek. We all just paused, looking at each other. It was a loaded moment. The air suddenly seemed heavy.

I gave a nervous chuckle. "I'm sure it doesn't." We all looked down at the open trunk, leaning in without realizing it, anticipating. I slowly reached down to the floor of the trunk at the front edge, near the latch for the trunk lid. There was a bit of a gap there, enough room for my hand to reach in. I stuck my hand in, grabbing the 'floor' of the trunk, and looked at each of the girls in turn. We were all holding our collective breath. I gave it a good pull, expecting nothing to happen, so I was caught completely off guard when the floor of the trunk came up easily. I stumbled back and let go of the false floor, losing my footing. The floor of the trunk fell back down and Cat caught me by the arm and steadied me. No one said anything. No one moved. We all just looked into the trunk, stunned, mouths agape.

Charlie reached in and took a hold of the false floor and lifted it rather reverentially. Below the false floor was a storage area crammed with weapons, talismans, salt, matches, just...stuff. She quickly dropped the floor and we all looked around the garage a bit guiltily, like we had been doing something naughty and were afraid of getting caught.

"No. Fucking. Way." El whispered into the stunned silence.

"Um. Well...Nicky did say they bought the car from a fan of the show. I'm sure he just made this all to match the descriptions in the books." We all just looked around at each other and then we all barked out nervous laughter.

"Yeah. Seriously. We're such dorks. You should have seen the looks on all your faces." Cat said. We all laughed it off.

"Listen. Let's stow your bags, get a bite to eat, and we can check the trunk out tomorrow in the daylight, okay?" I offered, feeling rather silly. For just a moment there, I thought...nah!

"Sounds like a great plan." Sammi said. She put her bags into the trunk. "Shotgun!"

To that there was a resounding chorus of dammits and son of a bitches. We got the bags in the trunk and ourselves back into the car. We ate at a little mom and pop family restaurant down the road. We spent the meal catching up on each other's lives. We laughed at the antics of Sammi's cats. We cried with Charlie, who recently lost her uncle to a hard battle with cancer. We toasted Cat's recent job promotion and my new job. We sat and listened in rapt attention as El regaled us with tales from her many trips she has taken.

We had settled into a comfortable silence and Sammi raised her glass. "To the Flannel Five." We all looked around at each other and giggled. The name was silly but not. It was just...right.

We all raised our glasses and clinked them together "To the Flannel Five!"


	4. The Weapons Cache

~4~ The Weapons Cache

My cell woke me up early the next morning. I had it set to vibrate at 6am and had tucked it under my pillow. I quietly snuck out of bed, not wanting to wake El. The girls all decided that, after a full day of travel, they wanted to sleep in today. I quietly went to the bathroom and got showered and dressed. When I came out, I was happy to see that El was still asleep.

I went over to the door that connected our two rooms, a nice feature that I'm sure we won't be able to get everywhere. I peeked into the other room to see if anyone was up. I smiled at Cat who was looking at me, first to volunteer for the roll away bed, and whispered a good morning. She didn't respond and I thought maybe I just didn't whisper loud enough so I waved at her. Still no response. I started to get nervous. Was she even breathing? My heart started racing and I rushed over and held my hand in front of her face, felt breath, and then was startled when she rolled over. Good Lord, did the woman sleep with her eyes open? Well that's just freaking creepy! Hilarious, but creepy.

I quickly checked the time. Seven a.m. I had half an hour. I quietly got my kindle out of my bag. I know, why the extra baggage? I don't have one of those fancy cell phones that has access to the web. It's basically only good for calling and texting. I was like Sam and his laptop, I chuckled to myself. Anyway, I opened up my music files and pulled up a song I downloaded just for this moment. I made sure I had the volume turned as loud as it would go, so that both rooms would hear it, and then sat, watching the clock.

I stood up in the connecting doorway, held out my kindle and at 7:30 on the button, I hit play. I even had the song paused at just the right point in the song ahead of time.

"Heat of the moment. It's the...heat of the moment..." My kindle rang out the song that woke Sam up for over 100 Tuesdays in a row in the Mystery Spot book. I looked around the rooms, waiting.

Cat, God bless her, sat straight up in bed, just like Sam did. The look on her face was hilarious. Charlie just started laughing into her pillow.

"Well played..." Sammi said from under a layer of sheets in the far bed.

"What the fuck? Dee you're too funny." I looked into my room to see El flopping back into her pillow, having sat up in her bed as well.

"Well, if we're going to do the Mystery Spot today, we may as well start it out right!" I said, grinning like a fool.

"Today's Tuesday right?" Cat asked.

"Yeah." I answered, still smiling.

"But yesterday was Tuesday too!" She answered. We all broke out in laughter.

"My God, Dee, you're a freak." Sammi said and that got everyone going, quoting their favorite lines from the book.

While people were showering and getting ready, Sammi and Cat came over and sat at our little table. Sammi set out a map and Cat asked "So, what's the plan for today?"

I pointed to the map. "The Mystery Spot is over here. The plan is to drive out and cruise the town, looking for Phil's Diner. If we can find it, we'll have breakfast there."

Cat and Sammi looked at each other and in unison said, "Pig in a poke!"

We all chuckled. "That's if Phil's Diner was a real place and not a fiction of Chuck's alcohol doused brain."

"Oh, please let it be real!" Charlie said, coming into the room.

"After brunch, we can wander the town, do some shopping or whatever floats your boats, and then head out to the Mystery Spot where the laws of physics..."

"...have no meaning!" they all answered.

"Sounds good to me." Cat said.

"Me too." Sammi replied.

"Yum. Can't wait to have me a pig in a poke." Charlie said.

Once we were all set to go and our stomachs were growling, we headed out to the car. We got outside and gathered around the car, but none of us hopped in. We just stood there eying the trunk and each other. "Okay. Let's take a quick look." I said, looking surreptitiously around the parking lot. There was not a soul in sight, so I made my way around to the trunk and pulled out the keys. I held them at the keyhole for a second looking at everyone. They all nodded in excited encouragement.

I unlocked it and popped the trunk open. The girls all gathered around, again leaning in without realizing we were doing so. I reached into the small crevice and pulled up the false floor of the trunk. I stood there holding it for a minute, eyes just roaming over the contents. El reached down, grabbed a sawed off shotgun, and propped up the false bottom with it, just as Sam and Dean always did in the books. I looked at her and smiled.

"Those are amazing replicas." Sammi said. "Whoever owned this car before must have been a huge fan."

I had had some experience with guns. My father and uncles all hunted and Nicky had quite the collection of firearms. He would have loved to have seen this. I saw shotguns, handguns, knives of various sizes and models. There were salt containers and matches scattered all over the place. Hanging from the raised panel were necklaces and charms of all sorts. There seemed to be no real organization to it.

My eyes spotted a small box. By the wrap on it, it appeared to be an old cigar box. Guessing at what should be inside, per the books, I hesitantly reached for it. When I grabbed it, it seemed to have broken a spell and everyone slowly reached for something in the trunk. I opened the box and found a pile of fake ID's. FBI, Sheriff, Homeland Security and more. They had actual pictures on them of two different guys. The books had cover art but no photos, so I assumed the previous owner of the car had these made with pictures of people he knew. One of the guys, Sam per the ID's, had long shoulder length brown hair. He matched the description in the books pretty darned well. The other, Dean, also matched perfectly with short brown hair.

"Wow, Dean is HOT! Well, at least this version is! Look guys! Fake ID's with photos." I held out a couple of them to the girls, who readily grabbed them.

"Hot damn! You can say that again, Dee!" El said as she looked over my shoulder at the ID I was holding.

"Sam is a hottie too. Damn!" Charlie said as she scrutinized the ID she held. We all passed around the ID's ooh'ing and ahh'ing over their rugged good looks.

"Guys?" Cat said, holding up one of the shotguns.

"Yo." I answered.

"I think these are real guns." She said. We all froze and exchanged looks of doubt and surprise. I reached into the trunk and pulled out what, according to the books, would have been Dean's pearl grip, Colt M1911 .45. I felt the heft of it in my hand. It was pretty heavy. Definitely made of metal and not plastic. It even had the fancy engraving on the nickel plated barrel, just as described in the books.

"No. They can't be. They must just be really good imitations."Sammi said. "It would be totally illegal to drive around with all this weaponry in your trunk!"

"Well, since when do Dean and Sam follow the letter of the law in what they do in the books?" Cat responded.

"That's the books, though. This is some guy's real car!" Sammi said.

The more I looked at the colt in my hand, the more I agreed with Cat. I popped the clip out and looked at the bullets within. "Guys. Cat is right. These are real." I held out the clip for everyone to see.

"How'd you do that?" Sammi asked.

"I've been around guns a lot." I answered.

"Well. I can tell you that this demon blade is real. At least, it's metal and not rubber or plastic. This stuff must have cost that guy a fortune!"

"Well, he was more a fanatic than a fan, I'd say." Sammi said, putting the salt rounds she had been looking at back into the trunk.

I laughed. "We are almost as bad. Road tripping to locations mentioned in the books."

"Good point!" Sammi said, smiling.

"So. What do we do about all these guns?" Charlie asked. We all studied the contents of the trunk and then each other.

"Well I vote we leave them where they are." I said. "I'll talk to Nicky at some point about them."

"Yeah, well, it's not like anyone knows they are there. False floor and all..." El said.

"Hell. Sam and Dean have been driving around with this shit in their trunk for years now!" Cat answered with a huge grin. "Maybe we can find a shooting range or some old cans and give some of these a shot."

"Ooo, yes!" Charlie, El and I all said together.

Sammi just rolled her eyes at us. "Okay. Whatever, you guys. Alright. All bad asses in the car! I'm starving!"

We put the guns and knives back into the trunk and lowered the false bottom into place. Charlie reached for the lid and I stopped her. "Hold on for a second." I went back to the room and came back with one of the brown blankets from one of the beds. I spread it out in the trunk, effectively hiding that there was anything untoward about it. Sammi smiled at me as Charlie closed the trunk.

We climbed into the car, Cat behind the wheel. "Who's ready for a pig in a poke?" She asked as she started up the car. We pulled out of the parking lot without a second thought to the weapons in the trunk.


	5. The Mystery Spot

~5~ The Mystery Spot  
...

We headed west out of Fort Lauderdale. The excitement of the trip was a palpable thing in the car. Not just excitement for the visit to the Mystery Spot, but for the entire road trip as a whole. We felt like we were finally on our way. This was really happening!

"I'm starving! How far is this town?" Charlie asked.

Sammi, who was riding shotgun again, pulled out her phone and brought up a map. "About forty minutes outside Fort Lauderdale." How did she do that? The trip had just begun and she had laid claim to the front seat! I guess that's what you get when you are the keeper of the maps.

I pulled out the brochure for the Mystery Spot and we passed it around, laughing at the obvious tourist trap-ness of it. We were going to go and drop our cash anyway. I lay my head back on the seat and closed my eyes, just listening to the girls laughing and talking and smiled. This was going to be such a good time. Heck, it already was. My cell phone ringing brought me out of my reverie.

I pulled out my phone and looked at it, my father again. What gives? I can't leave without them calling every day? Maybe if I actually talk to him, he'll leave me alone for the rest of the trip. "Guys...guys!" Everyone stopped talking and looked at me. "My dad, quiet for a sec, would ya?" I smiled at them and picked up the call.

"Dad. What's the emergency?" Maybe if I put it right out there, he'd get the hint?

"Dee, don't you ever answer that phone of yours?"

"Pop, I've been behind the wheel of a car, driving through the day and night. I can't be talking on my phone while I'm driving. My father taught me that." I added that last with a grin in my voice.

"Dee, Nicky has been trying to reach you."

"Well, what does he want? You can tell him his car is just fine."

"He wouldn't tell me what he wants. Just answer your phone when it rings, would ya?"

"He hasn't called, Pop. I've only received two calls, both from you."

"Well he called here yesterday, begging for your new cell number. He said it was an emergency. That boy, I swear..."

"Well, I'll call him, then. Has his number changed at all? I imagine it has." Nothing. "Pop? … Dad? ..." I had lost the signal. Darn. Well, I'll call Nicky tonight after our day is done. It couldn't have been that big of an emergency if he had gotten my number yesterday and still hadn't called.

"What was that all about?" El asked.

"I don't know. Pop said that Nicky had been trying to get a hold of me, but I haven't gotten anything from him." I checked my call log and my texts to make sure, but nothing.

"Well, maybe he got distracted." She said.

"With a piece of ass." Cat said from the front. We all laughed.

"You have no idea how true that probably is!" I told her.

"Okay, my fellow flannel sisters!" Cat proclaimed. "We're coming into town. Keep an eye out for the diner. What's it called again?"

"Phil's Diner" Sammi said. We all leaned toward the closest window and started scanning the businesses as we drove through town. We made it all the way through the small town with no luck.

"I'm going to turn around and drive though one more time and then, if we don't find it, I'll try a side road." Cat pulled into an abandoned building's parking lot to turn around. We got lucky on our second pass.

"There! There, there!" Charlie squealed. We all turned to look. It blended in so well with the rest of the buildings next to it, we could see how it was so easy to miss the first time through. Cat went down to the next block and parked in front of a small grocery store. We all spilled out of the car, laughing and talking excitedly.

"This meal is on me." El said.

"El, I said this whole adventure was being funded -"

"I don't care what you said, Dee. I'm paying for this meal. My little toast to our adventure. Okay?" El said, cutting me off.

"Yes ma'am." I saluted her. We exchanged grins and started after the rest. We had to walk back about a block or so to get to the diner. We came to a side street and waited while a car crossed in front of us. We crossed and continued on our way.

We passed a few cute shops, a few businesses, and a bakery. At the bakery I stopped. "Guys! Wait up!" I looked at the bakery and then backed up to the previous business. There was a doorway set back off the sidewalk a bit with a sign on the small wall next to it, listing the businesses with offices within. Further back was some sort of gift shop. I stood looking at the office building's doorway. Then I looked at the bakery and gift shop on either side. I closed my eyes trying to recall the Mystery Spot book.

While I was lost in my head, the girls just stood there staring at me. Finally Cat says, "My God, you're a freak." Everyone busted up laughing. It was a quote from the book and we all recognized it. It brought me out of my thoughts.

"What's up, Dee?" Charlie asked.

"Guys. I think...I'm pretty sure this is the spot!" I said getting more excited as I became more sure of myself.

"The spot? What spot?" El asked.

"This is where the desk falls on Dean!" I squeal. I turn to look at the girls and they all fall into the same trance I had been in, looking at the businesses on either side and closing their eyes as they tried to recall the description given in the book. "My God, you guys are freaks!" I teasingly jabbed.

"Shit! I think she's right!" Cat said, stepping back a bit to take in the office as well as the businesses on either side.

"Guys! I gotta get a picture!" Sammi proclaimed. So we all goof-balled ourselves into the doorway, holding our hands up over our heads as if protecting ourselves from a falling object. Sammi stepped back into a parking spot and took a few shots.

We were still laughing when we arrived at the diner. We all entered and just stood there, taking it all in. The description in the book was spot on. Muted browns and oranges, cash register and counter to the right as you walk in and booths along the windows to the left. There was a sign to seat yourself, so we all headed down to a large booth in the corner.

There were menus tucked into a small holder at the window end of the table but we all, almost as one, turned our eyes to the row of signs hanging up above the counter. "Hey Tuesday, pig in a poke!" We all said almost on cue. We broke down into fits of laughter, got a few looks from our fellow diners, and tried our best to settle down.

I handed menus around to the girls but had already decided I just had to get the pig in a poke just as Dean had, every day, for over a hundred Tuesdays in a row. "I'm getting a pig in a poke and El, you're getting one too, with a side of bacon."

"Oh Dee, I get all tingly when you take control like that." She answered, true to the book. We all shared another round of laughter.

A waitress came by and asked if we were ready to order. We gave her our orders, Sammi ordering Sam's short stack of pancakes. After she walked away, we all exchanged wide eyed stares.

"Did you guys catch the name of our waitress?" Charlie asked in a hushed, awed voice. We all just nodded our heads. "Seriously, how can that be?"

"Maybe Carver actually ate here and just jotted down the name of his waitress. I mean, seriously, how many Doris's can there be in the world?" Cat suggested.

"That must be it, although..." I responded, "my mom's name is Doris."

"Seriously?" Sammi asked. I nodded my head. "I'm sorry." She said with a grin.

"So is she." We all chuckled and quieted down, taking in the diner and the feeling of actually being there.

Doris brought our meals and set a bottle of hot sauce on the table for those who had ordered eggs and then went back to her rounds. I was almost upset that she hadn't dropped the bottle of hot sauce on the floor.

"Mmm, this looks good! I'm so hungry!" Cat said, eyes growing big and bright as she took in her plate.

Sammi eyed her suspiciously and said "I knew you were going to say that." Uh oh. Here it comes. Sammi and Cat were always spewing off quotes at each other on Facebook. I swear they must have the books memorized. We all leaned in, waiting for one of the most epic quotes from the book to come.

Cat gave Sammi the look, across the table, and it was on. They both took a breath and almost right in unison said to each other "Right, you're a mind reader. Cut it out, Sam... Sam! You think you're funny but you're being really, really childish! - Sam Winchester wears makeup. Sam Winchester cries his way through sex. Sam Winchester keeps a ruler by the bed and every morning when he wakes up... Okay, enough!" They gasped for breath at the end and the rest of us cheered and applauded. This earned us a chuckle and a smile from Doris, behind the counter.

After that, we were all too hungry for much conversation and it got quiet as we all tucked into our meals. We passed around the Mystery Spot brochure, some more, near the end of our meal, chuckling at the absurdity of it all. Doris came by, refilling coffee mugs and noticed the brochure on the table. "You all going out to the Spot?"

"That's the plan." El answered with a smile.

"Did you know a man disappeared out there, oh about three years ago? They never found him. Now that's a mystery!" She said it with a sly conspiratorial grin on her face. "I'll be right back with your check."

We all sat there with dumbfounded looks on our faces. I gave a nervous chuckle. "No way..."

"She has probably read the book. Actually, half the town probably has, since they feature in it. She's probably just messing with us." Sammi said, always the logical one.

"Yeah." I said, chuckling again. We got up and went to the register while El got the check and paid. I grabbed a little take home menu from a rack by the register as a souvenir and we were on our way to the Mystery Spot.

We paid for the usual tour and had a blast. The actual Mystery Spot and it's tour didn't really feature in the book too much. The boys go there, sure, but them taking the tour isn't really in the book. It's hinted that Sam takes it on one of his many Tuesdays in his attempt to try to save Dean from dying, but no detail is really given.

We laughed as we all stood on a step and stood 'straight' but appeared to be leaning out impossibly far over the floor. Sammi took tons of pictures for her scrapbooks. El sat in a chair that leaned off a little ledge on the wall by only it's back two legs and Charlie literally climbed a wall and hung out up in the corner of the ceiling. We laughed and were in awe all at the same time. We knew it was all cheesy but, at the same time, we stood amazed at the ball on a ramp that looked liked it was rolling up it.

By the end of the tour, I was beginning to feel queasy. All the slanted walls messed with your head and equilibrium to the point where I was beginning to feel dizzy. We popped into the gift shop and poked around. El and Charlie freaked when they found souvenir shot glasses and each purchased one.

While the others shopped around, I inquired about the missing guy from a few years before that Doris had mentioned. "Oh yeah, I did hear something about that." The gum chewing cashier said. "Hey Tim!" she called out toward a back room doorway. A man came through, looking to be about my age. "Tim, you were here when that guy went missing, right?"

"Ahh, yeah, yeah. I was. Guy came here, took the tour and asked a bunch of scientific questions. Everything he said was trying to debunk the whole thing. Really rude, actually. I remember him causing quite a stink with the manager. Apparently this was the last place he was ever seen. Never found him. Maybe the Mystery Spot swallowed him up." He chuckled and grinned at me, amused with himself. I thanked him for the info and hurried to catch up with the girls who were piling into the car.

I somehow ended up in the front seat and turned to everyone else. "Guess what?" They all raised eyebrows and responded with the standard 'whats'. "The guy in there confirmed that some guy actually did go missing here about three years ago. He remembers him getting into it with the manager."

"What the fuck." El said. She said it as a statement, rather than a question. She could write a book on the many ways to use the word fuck. She was quite prolific in it's use.

"I know, right?" I answered.

"But..." Cat said, dumbfounded. "It's just a story, right? What the hell?" Everyone started talking at once, batting theories around when the ever logical Sammi came to the rescue.

"Guys. Guys! Carver probably read about the disappearance and turned it into his next book. No big deal."

We all looked around at each other and started laughing. Guess we all just wished so hard that our Winchester brothers were real, that we were readily willing to accept that maybe they were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: There, sadly, is NOT a Mystery Spot in Broward Co., FL. But, I have actually been to the Mystery Spot in St. Ignace, MI. Just as cheesy as it sounds, but SO worth it at least once! The description of the tour in the chapter is based on the tour we took in Michigan. If you ever find yourself in the area, I highly recommend it...because it's where the laws of physics have no meaning!


	6. On The Road

~ 6 ~ On The Road  
...

We ate dinner at a restaurant called The Caves in Fort Lauderdale. Swordfish that melts in your mouth and that's coming from someone who doesn't like seafood too much. We all headed to bed soon after, knowing we had an early start the next morning.

"So. What's next on the agenda?" Cat asked around a mouthful of toothpaste.

"Next we head out to toast the boys on the rim of the Grand Canyon. Dean always wanted to go there, so we are going to go for him. Really it's just a stop on our way all the way across the country to Palo Alto, California." I told her.

"Agh! Sammy's college apartment!" Charlie exclaimed. "Oh...and Jess." She finished on a down note.

"I love the smurfs." Cat said and we all laughed.

"Well, it's an eighteen hour plus drive to get to Dallas and that's only half way to the Grand Canyon. I plan on firing up Baby around 3am, so get your beauty rest while you can. Who wants to take over for me when my eyes start crossing?"

"I will." Sammi offered. "I'm good with mornings."

"I'll help too, once I get some coffee or Red Bull in my system." Cat said.

"Thank God." El sighed. "I'm a total loss in the morning. You really don't want me behind the wheel that early in the day."

"Okay, then. Me, Sammi, and Cat take the first bit and you and Charlie can take over later in the afternoon and evening." I told her.

"Sounds like a plan." Charlie said, flopping onto her bed. The rest of us basically followed suit. We all got our bags as packed as we could so there would be little to do in the morning.

As the girls went about getting into bed, I went to the office to take care of the bill and check us out ahead of time. On my way back to the room, I stopped and leaned against the car and pulled out my cell phone. No messages and no missed calls. I hit the speed dial number for my dad and gave him a ring.

"Hey, Dee, how's the trip?" He answered.

"Going great, dad! We're having a blast. Hey, listen. I lost you earlier and never got Nicky's cell number from you. You have it handy?"

"Sure, sure, give me a moment." I could hear him fiddling with the little rolodex he kept by the phone. He refused to leave the dark ages. "Here it is, you ready?"

I pulled up my contact list on my cell, brought up Nicky and said, "Shoot."

"Alright, let's see..." I could almost hear him squinting as he tried to read the number he had on Nicky's rolodex card. "555 - 867- 5309" I entered the numbers into my cell and then started laughing. "What's so funny?" My dad asked.

"Nothing, Pops, you wouldn't get it. Okay, I have to go, early morning tomorrow! Thanks and love ya!" I clicked off before he could say anything more. If you let him, he'd talk your ear off about politics, sports, the weather in Brazil. You name it.

I looked at Nicky's number again, chuckling. That was SO a Nick thing to do. I wonder how much he paid or bribed to get that number. I almost felt silly dialing it. I gave it a go, though, and it just rang at the other end, eventually going to his voicemail.

"Yo, it's Nick. Let's do it, baby!"

What a dork, I thought, listening to his little message. "Hey Nicky, it's Dee. Pop said you were trying to reach me and that he gave you my number. What's up? Call me!" I wondered what was going on but thought it was probably nothing. He probably just realized that, whatever it was, it could wait until I got back. Well, I did my part in trying to reach him in return.

I went into the room to find almost everyone in bed. Charlie was just finishing up in their room and crawling into her bed and El was sitting in her bed, reading a book by the bedside lamp. I did my thing in the bathroom and turned in, 3am would be coming soon.

xxxxx

When my cell went off at three, I quietly got myself up and ready. I then silently woke everyone up. I think it's the quietest I'd ever seen this group before. Everyone moved around like zombies, gathering their stuff and taking their bags out to Baby's trunk. El and I went through the two rooms, double checking that we had not forgotten anything, I left the room keys on the little table and we went out. El crawled into the backseat, next to Charlie, pulled out her giraffe pillow and immediately got comfy up against the door. I did a last minute check of my maps, climbed in behind the wheel, and we were off.

"This is so great!" Sammi quietly said to me across the front seat. "We're finally on the road! I mean, the Mystery Spot was great fun, but now that we're all packed into Baby and heading out...it seems so much more real." She had a giddy smile on her face as she looked at me, the low lights from the dash reflecting off her glasses and teeth.

"I know. Every time I look at this car, I'm excited all over again. I can't believe we're actually doing this!" I whisper back. "Thanks for coming, Sammi."

"Are you kidding? I wouldn't have missed this for the world!"

After that, we settled into our seats. She, watching the scenery pass by out her window and occasionally looking at our maps and I, getting into my driving zone. I loved driving and this great car made it so much more enjoyable. We almost didn't notice the sun rising behind us later, it was so gradual a thing. I just suddenly realized I could see the trees and buildings and whatnot around us as we drove.

About five hours later, I pulled off at a Burger King for breakfast around Lake City. I know, a breakfast fit for champions. I looked around the car. Cat and Charlie were awake already and the stopped car had El waking up. "Time for breakfast, sleepy heads!"

"What time is it?" El asked, rubbing her eyes and looking out the windows.

"About eight o'clock. Time to get some breakfast, caffeinate Cat, and switch drivers." I said with a smile. We climbed out, stretched, and went in to breakfast, such as it was.

Sammi took over the wheel after we ate. Cat sat up front with her and the maps and I took a seat in the back to rest a bit. El leaned across the seat and handed me her giraffe pillow with a grin.

I woke up about five hours later. We were stopping at a shack of a diner outside Mobile, Alabama for lunch and a driver switch. So far we were making great time. The diner had some great seafood according to my girls. I was happy with the pulled pork sandwich I had, though. Cat took the wheel after with Charlie manning the maps. We cranked up the tunes and sang our hearts out for awhile, being silly and loving it.

A couple hours later, all were silent. I enjoyed watching the scenery. I had never been in this part of the country before and I was trying to take it all in. Somewhere between nowhere and nothing, Charlie let out a shout, rousing us all from our individual reveries.

"Shit! Cat pull it over. Pull over!" Charlie was practically yelling.

"Okay! Okay! Chill! What's the problem? Ya gotta pee that bad?" Cat answered. She pulled to the side of the road, cut the engine, and we all immediately saw what had caught Charlie's attention. Steam was pouring out from under the hood.

"Oh crap! Nicky's car! What's wrong?" I freaked. I quickly got out of the car and stood at the front looking at it, like that would fix it.

Charlie got out and quickly, and expertly, popped the hood. "Everybody stay back a bit. It's gonna be hot. Cat, can I have the keys? I need to get into the trunk." Cat tossed the keys to her and she went around to the trunk and started digging through the bags.

I followed her back to the trunk and everyone else got out, taking advantage of the stop to stretch. "You know what it is?"

She pulled a small bag out, zipping it open, retrieving a pair of gloves. "It could be nothing or it could be really bad. I won't know until I can take a look." She went back around to the front and started waving some of the steam away. She got down and looked under the car. The rest of us just backed up and let her do her thing.

"Thank goodness Charlie is a car guru!" Sammi said. We all nodded our heads in response, looking worried. We were all thinking the same thing. We were just getting started on this trip. It couldn't end now and not like this!

"Well, would you fucking look at that!" Charlie said. We all crowded around the engine, but we had no idea what we were supposed to be looking at.

"What?" I asked.

"Right here!" Charlie motioned to a hose. It had a gash in it and was soaking wet. "This little fucker right here is the problem."

"Is that a good thing?" I asked.

"Oh, pft, piece of cake!" She said, going back to the trunk. She came back with a roll of red tape.

"You're going to tape it up? Seriously?" El said.

"This isn't just tape! This is Rescue Tape. Makes an air and water tight seal and can withstand temps up to 500 degrees." She rattled off, quite proud of herself.

"Really?"

"Duct tape don't have shit on this stuff, El." Charlie leaned into the engine, wiped down the hose with a rag, and started wrapping the tape around the hose in question. She gave it a squeeze or two, tightening it on. She stepped back and admired her handi-work.

"Not bad. How long will it last?" I asked.

"Oh, this will easily get us to the next decent town with a parts store. Now I think I saw..." Her voice trailed off as she went back to the trunk, digging around. "Ah HA!" She exclaimed. "Whomever owned this ride before, knew how to stock a trunk!" She came around, again, holding aloft a large bottle. She set it on the ground and leaned against the car. "We can't refill the fluids quite yet. Engine's too hot and I don't fancy any burns. So...who's up for some road-side poker?"

We all just stared at her like she'd grown a third head. She just single-handedly repaired the engine, on the side of the road, without breaking a sweat.

"Charlie, have I ever told you I love you?" I asked. Everyone whooped and cheered, patting her on the back and hugging her. We settled in the grass, nearby, and actually played some poker. I think Cat was cheating, but I couldn't figure out how. All I knew is if we ever teamed up, I wanted her on my poker team.

About an hour later, engine purring once again, we were on our way. We stopped at the next decent sized town. Drove from the gas station to the local parts store. From there we were directed to a junkyard about five miles out of town. We eventually found a replacement hose for our needs and were on the road again. We never made it to Dallas, but we got close. We found a little place called Sunset Inn near Longview, Texas and called it a day.

"This place is a bit of a dump." Cat said as we pulled in.

"Sam and Dean would be proud." I answered to grins and chuckles.

We checked in and found they had only three rooms left. We ended up with a room with two doubles and a room with a king.

"You know..." Cat said as we were retrieving bags from the trunk. "Dean would have already made it to the Grand Canyon by now."

We all laughed at this truth. Trips in the books never seemed to be quite accurate in their lengths. Charlie and Cat sacked out in the king, El and Sammi took the two double beds in the other room, and I laid claim to the couch in the king room. We were all out in no time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: The Caves is an actual restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale that I ate at on my honeymoon...many years ago. The swordfish really was to die for! I wish I could share the map...yes I mapped this whole trip out on Google maps. The drive times, unlike in Supernatural, are fairly accurate. The whole trip, when it's all said and done will be 6,805 miles! Makes me wonder what the mileage on Baby would really be if the boys were really driving her all over the country! Hope you're enjoying the ride so far...because we're only just getting started!


	7. Grand Canyon

~7~ Grand Canyon  
...

We decided that yesterday was too long of a drive and split the next leg into two days. We drove about twelve hours to Albequerque, New Mexico and that night we decided to stay in for dinner. We swung by a local grocery store and bought sandwich fixings, fruit and chips. We bought some beer for our Grand Canyon toast. I got an Arizona Iced Tea for myself. I'm sure Dean wouldn't approve, but maybe Sammy would.

We gathered in one of our motel rooms and set up shop on the table by the window. We each fixed ourselves a plate of food and then sat in a circle on the floor. We played some poker, some gin, and I taught the girls Egyptian Rat Screw. We were so busy laughing and screaming over the last game that I almost didn't hear my cell ringing in my purse, by the tv.

Charlie, sitting closest, grabbed the phone from my purse and tossed it over. Everyone got quiet so I could hear, but continued playing the game without me.

"Yellow?"

"Dee?"

"Yes. Who is this?" I couldn't quite place the voice. It seemed muffled a bit.

"It's Nick."

"Nicky? I didn't even recognize your voice. You sound all muffled." When I said Nicky's name, the girls quieted and listened in to my end of the conversation. There was always entertainment to be had when Nicky was on the phone.

"It's my mouth. Swollen. Missing a few teeth. Jaw wired shut."

"What? Did you just say your jaw was wired shut? What the heck happened?" That got everyone's attention. The girls exchanged concerned glances.

"Nobody better be messing with my future boyfriend!" Charlie exclaimed.

"Your future boyfriend? Not if I get to him first!" El said. I waved at them to quiet them down.

"Tell me what happened Nicky."

"Listen... I may have lied a bit about the car..."

I jumped to my feet and started pacing back and forth. "Damn it, Nicky! I knew it! I should have known better! I was just so caught up in the car when I saw it that I never looked back." I sighed dropping my forehead into my hand. "What did you do? It's stolen isn't it?"

The girls all started getting a little nervous at that comment, looking back and forth at each other. El and maybe Cat, knew about Nicky and his questionable lifestyle. They started talking agitatedly to each other.

"Shh. Guys, calm down. Let her talk." El said putting her hands out to the others, calming them down. I smiled my thanks to her.

"Well, I didn't steal it...not literally. I mean.."

"Spit it out, Nick." He knew he was in trouble when I dropped the 'y' from the pet name I had for him.

"I did buy the car...from the guy who stole it."

"And it just so happens that some guy steals a car that happens to be the perfect match for the car in the books that I've been reading...that is the car featured in the books that I'm road tripping for..." I sighed rather loudly into the phone. "What aren't you telling me, Nick? How did it just so happen that this guy found a car just like that? Huh?"

An uncomfortably long silence followed. "Nick?"

"Okay...okay. I put out a call for a car matching that description. Offering to pay top dollar for anyone who could bring me one. I did it for you, Dee! For your trip! I wanted you to go in style!"

"That's some style! How do you think your cousin will look in prison orange?!" I yelled into the phone. Sammi got up and came up behind me, resting her hands on my shoulders. Yes, I needed to calm down. "Okay, so what happened to you? I assume the missing teeth and jaw has something to do with this?" I asked. I was truly concerned for his well being. I wasn't that cold and heartless! He was still my Nicky, even after all the bone headed things he did.

"Well, the owner of the car caught up to the dude who nicked it. Worked him over pretty good and the fucker ratted me out to him."

"Oh no, Nicky. Are you okay? I mean, other than the damage to your face?"

"Broken rib and I broke my hand punching him in the face." He said that last bit rather proudly. "Listen, I just wanted you to know. They said they weren't going to call the cops, but that they wouldfind their car."

"Their? There's more than one of them?" I was starting to feel sick. I dropped to the edge of the bed near me. Sammi sat next to me, keeping a hand on my shoulder. I smiled weakly at her.

"Yeah, tough guy pretty boy and a sasquatch. Listen, you don't have to worry.."

"I don't have to worry?! Nicky! They beat you and the other guy to a pulp over their stolen car and I don't have to worry?! I think he hit you in the head harder than you think!"

"What I mean, is this...how's he gonna find you? Seriously! I told them that you were headed to Fort Lauderdale, knowing you were already gone from there. Dee, the trail ends there! They can't find you!"

I let out another sigh. I suppose he was right. I didn't know what to do. "Listen. Thanks for the info, Nicky. I gotta go. You take care of yourself, you hear? Seriously, enough with all this crap, okay!"

"I'm sorry. Love you Dee. You know that, right?"

"Yes, Nicky... love you too." We hung up and I set the phone on the bed, just staring off into space.

We all sat there in silence. I think the girls were giving me a chance to settle down. They knew I'd talk when I was ready. I got up from the bed, went to the little kitchenette and turned the water on in the sink. All eyes followed my every move, waiting. I splashed some water into my face. When I turned, they were all staring at me.

"So, as you heard, the car is apparently a stolen vehicle. The owners beat up Nicky pretty bad. Broken rib and his jaw is wired shut. He told them we were headed to Fort Lauderdale." At that there were cries of alarm.

"What?! We are so screwed!"

"What will they do to us when they catch us?!"

"They wouldn't punch a chick in the face, would they?"

"Whoa! Guys! Settle down!" I said. "Nicky told them that yesterday, knowing we were already gone. He doesn't know the rest of our itinerary. Those guys will get to Fort Lauderdale and the trail will go cold."

"Wow, Dee, you sound like you belong on a crime show." El said, smiling.

"Should I put some sunglasses on?" I asked sarcastically.

"No, only no talent douchebags do that." Cat said. We all laughed and it was the tension breaker we needed. We all let out a collective breath. I sat back down in the circle.

"So. What do we do, guys? Nicky said the guy wasn't going to go to the cops, but did say that he would find his car."

"These guys sound like fucking punks to me." El said.

"Yeah. Who gets their car stolen and then goes all vigilante on the guys who stole it?" Charlie said.

"Sounds like something out of a movie." Sammi said.

We all went quiet, thinking on our problem.

"I say we keep going." Cat offered to the silence. We all turned and looked at her. She looked to each one of us. "Seriously. Look what we have on our side. We can't be found. No one knows our route, including me! We're a bunch of tough bad ass ladies, too! We can handle ourselves!"

"You do remember these are the guys that stock their replica car with actual guns and knives, right?" said Sammi, the voice of reason.

"I do. We are not Nicky or any of his cronies. We are a bunch of girls on a road trip. We were told the car was purchased and was lent to us by a family member for our trip. Who would beat us up? Seriously!" She again looked around at each of us. "We are innocent!"

We all looked at her and then around at each other. We slowly started to grin. God help me, I was liking her idea.

"I say screw any fucker who messes up my Nicky!" El exclaimed.

"Fuck the fuckers!" Charlie offered in collusion with El. They looked at each other and high fived across the circle.

I looked at Sammi, our voice of reason. She looked at me and then at the others. "Well count me in! Let's do this!"

In my heart, I was sick that I was knowingly driving around a stolen car, but at the same time, I could see the point that Cat made. We were just a bunch of innocent girls out on the road trip of a lifetime...screw 'em. "Okay then. That's settled. The road trip shall commence as scheduled!"

"Here's to screwing over and fucking fuckers!" El said raising her plastic cup. We all laughed and raised our plastic cups and tapped them together.

"You know who does this? Crazy people! We, are insane!" I quoted to them.

We all laughed and went back to our card game, dangerous car owners soon forgotten. I looked around the circle at my friends and wondered where they had been all my life.

\---------------------

The next day was glorious. The sun was shining, there was a nice breeze blowing, the windows were down, and the tunes were cranked. We arrived at Grand Canyon National Park about six and half hours after heading out from Albuquerque. We headed around the rim until we found a pull off that was relatively quiet.

We dug our drinks out of the trunk and headed over to the scenic overlook. We turned to each other and I noticed we had lost El. I looked back and she was sitting on a bench back the path a ways. "Hey! You coming, Pokey?"

"Hell no!" She called. "You won't get me anywhere near the edge of that thing!" I looked at her with a pouty face. "Seriously! You go do your toast and I'll wait right here. It's cool! Seriously! Go!" She made a little shooing motion with her hands, tipped back her beer, and took a swig. I shrugged and we went the rest of the way over to the edge.

Words can't describe the awesomeness of the Grand Canyon, so I won't attempt to do so. We all took in the view for a moment and then turned to each other. The others all looked expectantly at me and I raised my eyebrows. "What?"

"Well...say something!" Cat said.

"Me?"

"Yeah, Dee. This is your rodeo after all." Charlie said.

"But..." I looked to Sammi for help but she just twisted the knife.

"You can do this." Sammi said.

I sighed, looked out over the view before us, raised my iced tea and poured a smidge of it out over the edge. "To Dean. Who always wanted to go to the Grand Canyon and will probably never make it. His life is hard and full of loss and hardship. Here's to you, Dean." I raised my iced tea to the skies and then took a sip.

"That was beautiful." Sammi said and she poured a bit of her beer out and took a sip. Charlie followed suit.

Cat did the same and then said, "Even though he's a fictional character, that was beautiful."

"Shut up! You're the one that wanted me to say something, you bitch!" I said.

"Jerk! Come here. We can cry, hug, maybe even slow dance." She said, grinning and reaching for me to give me a big hug. I shoved her away, laughing.

"I feel like an idiot." I mumbled.

"And we love you anyway!" Charlie said, winked at me, and headed back down the trail to El.


	8. Palo Alto Shenanigans

~8~ Palo Alto Shenanigans  
...

We ate a light lunch of sandwiches, yogurt and whatever else we could find at the mini mart on the way up to the Grand Canyon. We sat around El's bench, laughing and eating. I picked up a small stone off the ground to add to my pull tab from my iced tea for my growing souvenir collection. My plan was to make a series of shadow boxes with photos and souvenirs. I sucked at taking photos, but Sammi was constantly snapping shots for her scrapbooks. She has already assured me copies of any photos I wanted.

After our lunch and one last peek at the canyon, we piled into the car. El was behind the wheel and taking directions from Charlie. We had about a seven to nine hour ride to Bakersfield, California. I was in the back in between Sammi and Cat who decided it was a great time for one of their quote-a-thons. Cat would let a quote fly and Sammi would attempt to identify the story it was from, responding with a quote from the same story. Then we would all jump in with any quotes we could think of. I knew a lot of quotes but Cat and Sammi had me beat by miles.

"I don't like the look of those teenagers down there." Cat said, eying Sammi across my lap. Sammi thought for a second and smiled.

"Easy. I'll man the flashlight!" All of us laughed and squealed like little girls.

"Yellow Fever!" Charlie called out from the front seat and it was on.

"I'm not going to make a left turn into oncoming traffic! I'm not suicidal!" I said.

"Did I just say that? That was weird." El added.

"Dude, you're doing 20. What? Safety's a crime now?" Sammi said to a round of laughter.

"Am I haunted? Am I haunted?!" Cat said in a freaked out voice to even more laughter.

"Man, I loved that book. So funny!" I said.

"The funny books were a nice change of pace, I thought." Sammi said.

"Poor Dean and his ghost sickness. He's always so bad ass and he's turned into a quivering mass of jelly." I said.

"Ghost sickness." Cat said

"Ghost sickness?" Sammi responded.

"Yeah."

"Oh God."

"Yeah." Cat continued.

"I don't even know what that is." Sammi finished. Again rounds of laughter echoed through the car.

"All the victims were dicks. So, you're saying I'm a dick?" Charlie quoted through her laughter.

"But I don't scare people. Dean, all we do is scare people. Well, then, you're a dick too." El said and we all called out the last line with her, "Apparently I'm not!"

This went on for quite some time. When we ran out of quotes from one book, Cat would whip out another one from another book. We continued playing at it all the way til dinner at a little In-N-Out Burger place in Barstow. Charlie took over the wheel and it got quiet after that. We got into Bakersfield around ten and we were all beat. We checked into the Vagabond Inn and went straight to bed with the agreement that tomorrow was a sleep in day.

\---------------------

The next morning was lazy and it was a nice change of pace. Sammi was up first and walked down the street until she found donuts and muffins to bring back. By the time she returned, most of us were up. We eventually chucked a donut hole at Charlie, hitting her right on the nose. She pulled her pillow over her face and mumbled something about beauty rest.

"So, it's about four hours into Palo Alto and the Stanford area, but I have no idea where the apartment is." I say of the day's adventure. We were going to attempt to find Sam's college apartment he shared with his girlfriend Jess. The location of Dean's now famous line, "Dad's on a hunting trip and he hasn't been home in a few days." The beginning of hunting with the brother's Winchester.

"Well, I have something to say on that score." Sammi says. She sets down her muffin and goes to her bag, grabbing her laptop. She pops it open on the table and starts bringing up some stuff on the web. "I made contact with some crazy chick on one of the message boards. You think Cat and I know the books? We got nothing on this chick! I swear she sounds like she's kissing cousins with the author himself. Let's see here..."

El walks around the table and leans over Sammi's shoulder. "Samlicker81?" She asks, laughing and rolling her eyes.

"I know, right?" Sammi chuckles. "Anyway, I put out on the boards that we were going to be in the Stanford area and really wanted to see the apartment. Samlicker81 contacted me in a private message. She wanted to know if it was a serious inquiry."

"Seriously? With a screen name like samlicker? She wanted to know if you were serious?" El busted out laughing.

"So, Sammi, what is your screen name?" I asked.

"Mine is 'sogetthis22'." She answered.

"Nice!" Cat said. "I love it!"

"Oh yeah. So get this...you're not serious at all." El said sarcastically.

"Anyway, we went back and forth a bit in the private messages and she said she had a source and would get back to me if it panned out. Let's see here...there it is! She's got an address here and she says to protect it with our lives."

"A bit over the top, there, samlicker." El said with a shake of her head.

"Well, sweet! We have an address! Let's roll!" I said.

"Anyone gonna eat that last boston cream donut?" Charlie asked, seemingly completely unaware of the conversation that had been going on around her. We all just stared at her. "What? I'm not a morning person!"

xxxxx

Due to our later than usual breakfast, no one was hungry for lunch, so we drove straight through to Palo Alto, getting there around 1 o'clock. We had to drive around a bit, but we eventually found the place. We sat in the car staring at the building, excited to have actually found it. "So, now what?" Cat asked. We just sat there and looked around at each other.

"Umm..." I said shrugging my shoulders. "I hadn't thought about that bit." We all laughed like idiots.

"Well, I'm gonna check the fucker out." Charlie said, hopping out of the car.

"Charlie!" Sammi called. We all quickly jumped out of the car after her.

Charlie strode to the apartment building like she owned it, the rest of us walking quickly to catch up, looking around like we were up to no good. She opened the door and looked at the flight of steps. "What number was it?" she asked Sammi.

Sammi, God bless her, looked like a deer caught in the headlights. "Um, number three?" she offered. Charlie just went right up those stairs. What did she think she was going to do when she got up there, anyhow? We, of course, all stumbled up the steps behind her.

She found number three, walked right up to the door, and knocked.

"Charlie!" I whispered at her. "What the hell?"

"What? I wanna see the place." She responded matter of factly.

"You do realize it won't match the description given in the book, right?" El asked. We all turned to her as if she had just appeared out of thin air. "The fire? Jess? It would have been completely re-built after the fire. Duh!"

We all nodded our heads as if we all knew that already and hadn't needed the reminder, which earned us all another of El's great eye rolls. When we turned back to Charlie, she was on her knees, fiddling with the door knob. Scratch that. Upon closer inspection, it appeared as if she was trying to pick the lock. "Charlie!" I gasped.

"What the actual fuck?" El said.

"What? Sam and Dean make it look so easy." And before she could even finish that sentence, the door clicked and swung open. We just stood there staring at the open door.

"We are so going to jail." Sammi sighed.

Cat laughed. "Well, with this group, that was only a matter of time, right?"

"Oh, why the hell not..." El said and walked past Charlie and into the apartment. We all followed, again looking around and acting, in general, very suspicious and un-Winchester-like.

"The kitchen!" Cat said. "We have to go to the kitchen. That's where it happened." So we all filed into the kitchen and just stood there looking around at someone else's belongings.

"Sam, we need to talk about some private family business." Cat said.

"Whatever you have to say, you can say it in front of Jess." Sammi continued.

All together, in a hushed, almost reverent way, we all finished, "Dad's on a hunting trip. And he hasn't been home in a few days."

"Who the hell are you people and what the fuck are you doing in my apartment?" A male voice asked. Our eyes all bugged out and we slowly turned around. There in front of us was a little guy holding a bag of groceries in one hand and a key chain in the other.

Cat boldly moves to the front, eyes him in a rather seductive way and says, "Oh, I love the smurfs." At which I couldn't hold it in and busted out a bark of a laugh and El slapped her hand over my mouth.

"What the fuck...?" The guy asks.

Sammi, our voice of reason, steps in and saves the day. "I'm sorry sir, I think we were set up by my brother. He's sent us on a wild goose chase and he said this was the place to go and the door was unlocked and well...obviously this isn't the right place at all and we'll just be leaving. We haven't touched a thing, I swear." She held up her hands as some sort of proof of our innocence.

The guy looked around at all of us, lingering a little longer on me. My eyes were tearing up from pent up laughter and El still had her hand over my mouth. He took a look around the place and seemed satisfied. "Yeah, whatever, just get out."

"Thanks and I'm so sorry about this." Sammi said and we slowly filed out past him. Taking the stairs with El's hand over my mouth wasn't an easy feat, but when we hit the parking lot, we were all laughing so hard we were crying.

"Sammi's cool head saves the day!" El said.

"What the hell with the smurfs thing, Cat?" Charlie asked.

"It just seemed appropriate at the time." she answered.

"I haven't laughed that hard in such a long time." I said. "And Cat...did you wink at him when we were leaving?"

"Maybe." To which we all lost it all over again.

"So...who's hungry?" I asked.

"God, I'm starving!" Charlie exclaimed.

"Yeah all that nefarious breaking and entering has made me a bit peckish." Cat said with a sly grin.

"What do you say we just walk the block and see what there is?" I offered and they all nodded in agreement.

As we walked, at one point, El just stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. "El? You okay?"

She gave me a thoughtful look and answered, "Yeah. Yeah, I'm cool." She jogged to catch up and we found a little diner at the end of the block.

At the end of the meal, El looked around at all of us, a devious glint in her eye.

"What?" I asked.

"Yeah. I've seen that look before. I believe Charlie had it when she hopped out of the car earlier." Sammi answered shaking her head at the thought of what further mischief the Flannel Five were about to get up to.

"We passed a tattoo parlor on the way here." El said. She just let the sentence hang there, raising her eyebrows at us.

"Yes!" Cat exclaimed and I said "No way!" at the same time.

"Oh, fuck yeah!" Charlie said.

Sammi just dropped her face into her hands, still shaking her head.

"Oh yes!" El said. "We're gonna do it! All of us." She added, looking at Sammi and I in particular.

Everyone was looking at me, for some reason. Like they needed my permission. "Fine. Fine! You only live once, right?" I answered them.

"Yes!" El responded.

"Unless you're a Winchester." Cat said.

So, on our way back to the car, we all stopped by the tattoo parlor and got anti-possession tattoos. El got hers on the outside of her ankle. Sammi and Cat got theirs on the inside of their wrists. Charlie got hers in the classic tramp stamp location. I got mine on the back of my right shoulder with the words non timebo mala curving around it at top and bottom. Hey, this will be the only ink I ever get, may as well go all out.

Afterwards, we drove just under an hour to the Harris Motel in Oakland to comments about how not bad ass I was in the receiving of my tattoo. I may have shed a tear or two and I answered their teasing with a Dean quote of my own, "I wish I couldn't feel a damn thing!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I have never gotten a tattoo myself...although I have thought on it many times. I think I'd want Sam and Dean done in the style of Calvin and Hobbes busting a move. - I wanted so badly for the girls to visit Sammy's apartment, but knowing no address was ever given, wasn't sure how to get them there. Thanks to the Becky tie-in idea from my fanfic ho, Jingles!


	9. The Devil's Gate

~9~ The Devil's Gate  
...

That evening wasn't so bad. The Harris Motel was a classic Sam and Dean pit stop, complete with a bed with magic fingers. We all took turns on it until we ran out of quarters, laughing hysterically the whole time. We got an early start the next day and were going over maps at breakfast.

"So what's our next point of interest?" Charlie asked.

"Well, we're going to find the Devil's gate cemetery. Or, at least, attempt to. There are two possible locations that I found online. The Midwest Cemetery or the Freeland Cemetery. Both are outside Casper, Wyoming." I pulled up the map on my kindle and put it out on the table, in between coffee cups, pointing out their locations. "We'll come to the Freeland one first, so we'll check it out first and if it's a bust, we'll head on up to the other one."

"Looks like a bit of a drive." El said.

"Yup. I already have us a place to stay in Elko, Nevada. The Thunderbird Motel."

"Sounds cool." El answered with a smile. "Well then, if everyone's done, let's hit the road!"

We went about paying our bill and last minute trips to the restroom and then headed out. I never got tired of the scenery out here. I might never see this part of the country again and I was soaking it all up. Even the fast food joints and gas stations. We didn't have In-N-Out Burger places out east, so every little difference was being noted. It was a quiet ride, conversation-wise. The tape deck was cranking out some AC/DC and I noticed a few fingers tapping along, but for the most part everyone was just taking in the sights.

A couple hours later, El pulled off for gas. "Where are we anyway?" Cat asked, as we all climbed out to stretch and get some drinks inside.

"Um, sign back there said Truckee, I think." El answered.

"You think? You're not getting us lost are you?" Cat returned with a grin.

"Seriously? There's only, like one major highway out here. As long as I don't get off it, I can't get us lost."

"Point. Except we're off it now."

Before El could answer, a phone went off. I leaned into the car, but it wasn't mine. I looked around and everyone was checking pockets and purses. Everyone just looked around at each other and shrugged. "I think it's coming from in the car. Who left a phone in the car?" I asked. Everyone held up their respective phones.

I opened the passenger side front door and climbed back in and listened. I crouched my head down and then popped open the glove box. Wow, how have we not looked in here? I reached in and pulled out about four cell phones. One of which was humming as it rang. El leaned over, listened, and picked one up.

She looked at the display. "Dean's cell is calling." She read. We all looked around at each other.

"Very funny." Sammi said.

"Seriously!" El held out the little display so we all could take a look. Sure enough, Dean's cell was calling. El hit a button and held it up to her ear. "Hello?" ….. "Who am I? Who are you?"... El was getting agitated. "Dean. Dean who?"... "My name is Ella, if you must know. I think you have the wrong number." …... I could now hear a tinny voice from the phone. This Dean guy was raising his voice to the point we could all hear the sound of it. "Don't you call me a fucker! And I didn't steal anyone's car!" ….. "I found the phone...it was ringing... I answered it." …... "Yes, as a matter of fact I do!" …... "No. I'm not telling some shithead where I am! You could be some crazy serial killer or something!" …... She covered the mouthpiece and whispered to us, "He's laughing at being called a serial killer! This guy is-" …... She quick canceled the call. "We have to lose these phones and I have the perfect idea."

"Wait! What's going on?" I asked to a chorus of 'yeahs'.

"This guy, says his name is Dean, and wants to know where I am. I tell him no. He says he knows I'm the fucker who stole his car and, well I set him straight on that! He then tells me he knows I'm in California!" El blurts out all in one breath.

Cat smacks herself in the forehead. "The phones! Duh!"

"She's right. We were so stupid!" Sammi says. I look at them in confusion.

"In the books, Dean has used the GPS in the phones before." Cat starts.

"Yeah. He's probably turned the GPS in that phone on and he's pin pointed exactly where we are." Sammi finished.

"You guys talk like that was actually Dean from the books." El said.

"Either way, we need to lose the phones, you're right. What was your idea, El?" Cat asked.

"Well, there was a sign as I was getting off the highway for an Amtrak station. We can ship the phones back to Oakland, or wherever the next train is going." El answered.

"Brilliant!" Sammi said.

"My heart is pounding, guys. Let's get this done and put some distance between us and this town." I said.

"Did he sound cute?" Charlie asked. We all turned and looked at her. "What?"

El laughed. "Oh yes. Gravelly, rough voice. Hot phone sex, voice." she said.

"You're lying." I teased.

"Oh, Lord, I wish I was." She said, staring off into space.

"Okay, okay. Let's get going. Get some gas in this baby and let's hit the road." I said, rolling my eyes.

We got our gas and got out of there, drinks forgotten. We followed the signs to the train station and checked about sending a package back. We assured the woman that my brother would be picking it up in Oakland. The price was crazy high, but worth it considering the guy following them laughed at being called a serial killer.

We drove about another two hours before our stomachs made us stop for lunch. Not knowing how close the towns were out here, we decided Lovelock, Nevada was as good a spot as any. Feeling nervous, we all ate quickly and were back on the road in no time. About three hours later, Cat was pulling us into the Thunderbird Motel. It was around 6pm and none of us were feeling overly hungry, having felt like we just ate.

We decided to cool off at the pool for a bit and then we went out on the town. We found a bar that sounded fun and went in to forget about Dean. I was the designated driver for the night. We all ordered wings and burgers and drinks. Charlie tried her hand at hustling. Dean and Sam made their money hustling pool in the books. Charlie made $400 playing darts. Not too bad, but I sure hoped the boys made more than that playing pool, otherwise I couldn't see how they could keep gas in Baby at those rates.

We got back late to the motel, but Dean was forgotten and everyone had a pretty good buzz going. I tucked them all into bed and realized I would probably be driving the first leg tomorrow. I just hoped I could get these guys moving in the morning!

\---------------------

It was a rough morning, but all agreed worth the fun of the previous night. I drove six hours before switching off with Sammi. We got into Casper later than planned and so decided the cemeteries could wait til the next day.

Since we had passed where Freeland cemetery was the previous night, we decided to start with the Midwest Cemetery first. It was six of one, really. Both cemeteries were about an hour's drive out of Casper, in opposite directions. Not wanting to completely trust web maps, I stopped in the motel office and asked the clerk. He had heard of the Midwest Cemetery but wasn't sure how to get there, but knew of Freeland and said getting there was a snap, showing me on my map.

He called Marissa up, from housekeeping, about Midwest, though. When she got there, she told me her brother lived out that way. She looked at my map and said there were two ways to get to the cemetery, but the road was dirt and not always kept up very well. She showed me both ends of it on my map and said if we come to a washed out bridge, then we'll need to go around to the other end and try from there. We may have to walk in, she said at the end. I thanked her profusely and headed out to the car and the waiting Flannel Five.

"Okay. Here's the scoop. Make sure you have your hiking boots on today. This place is out some dirt road and the lady in there didn't even know if we would be able to get all the way through without walking part of it." I told them.

"Wow. Great. Sounds like fun." Sammi said.

"Said no one, ever." Cat finished. "Seriously, let's go. I'm up for the adventure. This is why we came, right?"

"Right!" Charlie said. "I'm driving!"

"Shotgun!" El called.

We piled into the car and headed out to parts unknown. Turns out, Midwest Cemetery was a big fat bust. We did come to a washed out bridge, had to double back, and go all the way around to the other end of the road. Dirt path, really. Charlie insisted on stopping before we got all the way there. Said the sand wasn't good for the car. We only had to walk a mile or so, so it wasn't that bad. The cemetery, though, was a fenced in area that held one or two discernible headstones. It was a place out of a bygone era. Nothing but dirt and some scattered stones. Sammi took a few pictures just because and we headed back to the car.

"Holy crap, this car is an oven! Whose idea was it to make this trip in a black car?" El said, sarcastically.

"Well, I'm just glad we brought lots of water. Dee, make sure you stay hydrated, girl!" Sammi called out as she tossed a bottle my way.

"Okay. Well then, that was a bust. Let's hope Freeland is better." I said as I took my bottle and climbed into the car. "Ow! Guys watch the metal trim, it's baking!"

We all climbed in, Charlie again taking the wheel. For some reason, we were all more than happy to let her drive on these dirt roads. We passed back down through Casper and headed back out the way we had come the night before. This time making a few turns and before we knew it we were there. This one already looked more promising.

We climbed out and all just wandered into the graveyard in no particular fashion. We all headed off in different directions. The grass, where it could be found, was tall and over grown. The headstones were very old and crumbling.

"Guys! Over here! I think I found it!" called Cat. We made our way in her direction and found her standing before a mausoleum of sorts. We all stopped and stared at it with mouths agape. The door of the mausoleum appeared to made of brass or copper. It was hard to tell. There were intricate carvings all over it in patterns and lines and rings with an odd shaped hole in the middle about the size of a dime or so.

"Okay is anyone else getting a little creeped out by this?" Sammi asked.

"Yeah. I mean, yes. I mean...come on!" Charlie said, still distracted by the door in front of her.

"Is anyone else finding it just a little strange that all the places we've been to are really real? I mean, do you really think Carver traveled all over the country seeing and hearing strange things and making books out of them?" I asked.

El slowly reached out and touched the gate, gasped, and pulled her hand back. "What? What is it?" Cat wondered. We all leaned in to touch the door and had the same reaction. The door was as cold as ice, almost burning to the touch. "Okay, that's odd."

"Ya think? Considering it's got to be 90 degrees out here?" El said. "What the fuck?"

Sammi took a quick picture and announced her intentions of heading back to the car. The place definitely had an eerie quality to it and it wasn't just because it was a cemetery. I went with her, the others following behind. Once back at the car, we all just sat there for a moment, almost sighing with relief at being back in it's safety. "That was fucking creepy." Charlie announced. We all agreed and it was a quiet trip back to town.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: In my research I found that there is no location given for the cemetery where Azazel has the gate to hell opened, but the common opinion is south central Wyoming. So I searched for cemeteries in that area and picked a couple at random. The first one the girls visit, if looked at on Google maps, really is just a wasteland. Kind of cool, really. Interesting side note: There IS a geological formation in Wyoming known as The Devil's Gate.


	10. Broken Bow Cardboardeaux

~10~ Broken Bow Cardboardeaux  
...

We had a lazy morning the next day and eventually dragged ourselves out of town about eleven o'clock. We got into Broken Bow, Nebraska at around seven. I decided to take a break from the cheesy Winchester-style motels and stay someplace nice. Of course, that decision was helped by the total lack of any good choices in where to stay in Broken Bow. There were five options and I didn't really like any of them, so, we are staying at The Cobblestone Hotel & Suites. Really nice place with an indoor pool and hot tub.

We lazed around the pool until they kicked us out at ten that night. We ordered room service and watched movies in the rooms. I think we were all steeling ourselves for what lay ahead. It was going to be a sad stop on our road trip, but one we all agreed couldn't be missed. The next morning, Sammi, Cat and I went to a local grocery store to buy supplies for the day. Cat got the drinks, while Sammi and I covered the food. We were going on a picnic, of sorts.

Back at the hotel, we made sandwiches and popped them into the mini fridge in the suite. Cat got the wine chilling and we all headed back down to the pool. We didn't plan on going out until late afternoon, so we decided to take some time to relax. We all climbed into the hot tub and realized one of our number was missing. "Where'd Charlie go?" I asked. Everyone glanced around, shrugging shoulders. Just then she came into the room. "You get lost?"

"Nope. Just taking care of some business at the front desk." She said with a smirk. We all looked at each other in confusion and worry. What was she up to?

"Charlie? I can't imagine any business you might have with the front desk that could be good." El said. We all laughed. Charlie really would make a great pair with my Nicky.

Charlie climbed down into the hot tub with us, getting comfortable. "Trust me guys, you will thank me." She said this with a pointed look at the screaming kids playing over in the pool that we were all trying to ignore.

Cat squinted her eyes at Charlie. "I don't know what you're up to, but I'm game."

"Ditto."

"Same."

"Oh, hell..."

While we sat considering Charlie, a guy came in from the hotel staff and blew a whistle, making us all jump. He walked over to the families and those using the pool and talked quietly to them. They all began packing up their things and leaving. El cocked an eyebrow at it and then at Charlie, who was grinning like a fool. The employee came over to us and looked at Charlie. "Miss Winchester, the pool area is yours for the next two hours and the items you requested will be delivered shortly."

"Thanks, honey." Charlie said with a sly grin and a wink. The poor guy actually broke out in a blush and hurried from the room.

After closing our mouths, we just stared at Charlie. "How'd you...?" Sammi questioned.

"Hey $400 bucks may not rival Dean and his mastery of the pool table, but it'll buy us private use of a hot tub and some drinks." She said.

"Miss Winchester?" El asked.

We all laughed and leaned back, relaxing into the hot water and quiet of the now empty room. A few minutes later a different young man came in, set a box and a bag on a small side table next to a few deck chairs nearby. "Anything else, Miss Winchester?"

"No, sugar, you did just fine." Charlie answers with another evil grin and wink. After breaking out into a blush of his own, the young man left. Charlie got out of the hot tub and produced iconic red plastic solo cups. She turned the box around, revealing a spigot on the other side. She poured some of the contents into a cup and handed it to El. "Only the best for my girls! I present to you the cheapest cardboardeaux money can buy!"

El laughed taking the cup of cheap wine with a gracious nod of her head. Charlie proceeded to serve us all. I took my cup but just held onto it, not being a drinker myself.

We all relaxed and enjoyed our time, courtesy of Charlie.

"Dee." Sammi said a little while later.

"Hmm?" I answered with my eyes closed and head leaning back against the edge of the hot tub.

"You haven't had one sip of your drink."

"I don't really drink, guys. But don't let me ruin your fun." I lifted my head and noticed everyone had stopped chatting and were looking at me. "What?"

"I think it's time you started." El said, with a gleam in her eye.

"Guys. Someone has to stay sober in order to drive later." I said trying to reason with them.

"Dee, we won't be leaving for another three or four hours and it's only boxed wine, for goodness sake!" Cat said.

My eyes wandered to each face noticing the raised eyebrows and looks of expectation on each. I sighed.

"Don't be rude to your hostess." Charlie said in a poor approximation of an english accent.

"Fuck yeah, Dee. Don't wanna be rude!" El said, teasingly. I sighed again.

"Fine. Fine." I raised my cup so all could see it and took a small sip. It wasn't really so bad. I was expecting something bitter, having only ever tried beer when I was twelve. "Happy?" I asked them.

"Seriously?" Sammi said.

"Yeah. What the fuck was that, Dee?" Charlie asked.

"What? I took a -" I was cut off before I could finish by El starting up a chant.

"Chug, chug, chug, chug." The rest joined her.

"Oh my...Fine!" I raised my cup again and drained it. I turned it over, so they could see it was truly empty. "Now are you satisfied?!" This was met with a chorus of cheers from the girls.

"That's what I'm talking about." Cat said with a grin.

Charlie got out and refilled everyone's cups, mine included. When she handed mine back to me, she gave me a stern look until I took a sip. She then smiled and climbed back into the hot tub. I must say, for someone who never drinks and my small frame...that boxed wine knocked me quite loopy, much to everyone's amusement.

We hung out at the pool and hot tub for our two screaming-kid-free hours just enjoying each others company and even the silence that fell between bouts of conversation. One of the things I liked about these guys is how we didn't feel the need to fill the silence with mindless drivel. We cleaned up our cardboardeaux and cups and headed back up to our rooms to clean ourselves up and get ready for our field trip. "So, how do we know where we're going?" El asked while we were going about getting dressed.

"Same as Sam's apartment. Sammi found the info on the message boards online. I guess a few who live out this way have actually been to Harvelle's." I answered.

"Seriously? It's a real place?" I answered with a nod of my head while focusing on my shoelaces. "Doesn't that strike you as fucking odd? I mean, I can understand one or two of these places from the books as having been real...but...every one of them? Come on!" She was right. It was odd, but I had been afraid to say anything out loud for fear of sounding crazy.

"What's up in there?" Cat's voice came through the door.

El opened our bedroom door and waved her hand in my direction. "Dee says Harvelle's was a real place and that online, people have said they've actually been there."

"Sweet! Another $400 bucks! I hope they have a dart board!" Charlie exclaimed.

El rolled her eyes at Charlie. "No, Charlie, not sweet! Doesn't it bother any of you how every place mentioned in the books has been a real place?!"

"I wouldn't say it bothers me per se." I answered quietly. "More like peaks my curiosity?"

El let out an exasperated sigh. "Sammi! Help me out here! Cat?"

"Well. It does seem quite odd..." Sammi offered.

"Maybe," Cat put in, "maybe, Carver was just an eccentric traveler and took all the various places he's been to and put them into his books. Makes the books more exciting, don't you think?" Cat smiled, raising her eyebrows at us, looking for agreement. I nodded at her but inside I was beginning to feel what El was going through. I don't think any of them even thought about it at the time, but we even had a guy after us named Dean who accused us of stealing his car. A car that just happened to have a trunk full of real weapons.

"Yeah." Charlie said. "Just a traveler. We about ready to go?" Her question derailed El's questions as we all gathered what we would need for our evening out.

Once we were in the car and driving, Sammi piped up with a question of her own. "You think it...you know...?"

"Burned down?" I asked.

"Yeah. I mean, the message boards didn't really say a lot about it other than it was a real place and where it was."

"Guess we'll just have to wait and see."


	11. Harvelle's Memory

~11~ Harvelle's Memory

We drove for a ways north of town and transferred onto a dirt road. Sammi followed the little map and directions on her phone, leading us right where we needed to go. We turned off the road and down a short drive that opened up onto a cluttered lot. Sadly, it seemed Harvelle's really had burned down. There was what looked to be a shell of an RV to the right and next to it, to the left, the rambling remains of the Roadhouse. There appeared to be most of two adjoining walls still standing in the front left corner and part of a wall on the right, next to the parked RV. Weeds were growing up, in spots, through what was left of the floor.

I stopped the car and we just sat in silence, staring. Nobody had anything to say. I experienced shock that the place was real and then a sickening lump in the pit of my stomach that it really had burnt down. I hoped the deaths in the fire were just a manufacture of Carver's imagination. I looked around the car and saw the evidence of similar thoughts on the faces of my friends. I cracked open my door, taking a last look at them. We all looked at each other, maybe building our courage to venture out, from one another. I stepped out and the others followed.

Sammi pulled out her camera and went to town, documenting our visit. We all just wandered in our different thoughts and directions. Cat bent down and picked up a scorched light bulb at the front of what was left of the building. She looked up. My eyes followed. There was a small portion of what used to be the Roadhouse sign, hanging on the remaining bit of front wall. Cat looked down again at the light bulb and then pocketed it.

I ventured into the remains along with El and Charlie. I stopped just past the threshold and closed my eyes. I tried to envision what the place would have looked like, thinking of the many descriptions given in the books. I could almost hear the jukebox playing "Can't Fight This Feeling" by REO Speedwagon. I picture some old hunter playing a video game in the corner, trying to beat Jo's score. Ash and some stranger are playing pool off to the left. Ellen, behind the bar, pouring beers for rough and tumble hunters and road weary folks who somehow have stumbled upon the Roadhouse. Jo brings out a basket of fries for a guy in a booth to the right. I open my eyes and can almost see Sam and Dean sitting on bar stools at the bar in front of me.

I'm shaken from my thoughts as Sammi shakes my shoulder. "I said, are you okay?"

"Huh? Yeah. Yeah. I was just picturing the place as it used to be. Well, trying to at least. So sad."

She gives my shoulder a squeeze and nods her head. She heads into the roadhouse's remains and takes a few more pictures.

I look around, thinking it seemed so much smaller than I thought it would be. I shift some debris around with my foot and a glint catches my eye. I bend down and pick up a bottle cap. I go to wipe the black soot off of it and stop short. No. I decide a proper remembrance of Harvelle's should keep the soot of the fire intact. I pick up several bottle caps as I wander around the building.

"Fuck yeah! I don't fucking believe it!" El exclaims with more excitement than the situation seemed to require. We look over and she's gone back near the back left of the building and was digging around in the remains.

"What don't you believe?" Cat asks, walking over.

El stands up and holds a board above her head in triumph. The left side of the sign is burned away and across it's front we could read 'ADASS' and in the bottom right corner was an 'IS:' It was Ash's office door sign which, according to the books, originally read "Dr. BADASS IS:" and it had a smaller sign that hung from it with an IN and an OUT on it. The smaller sign was gone, probably burned in the fire.

"Cool souvenir." Charlie said, smiling. But as we all looked at it, our smiles faded and were replaced with sadness.

"So...Ash was real." Sammi said. "Or, at least, someone whom Ash was based on."

El looked back down at the sign in her hands. She took a hand and gently ran it across the surface of the sign. She looked reminiscent of a mother holding the belongings of a lost child and my chest tightened at the sadness of the scene. I turned away, maybe too quickly, and continued wandering the building.

Sammi, over to the left, bent down and dug around a bit, coming up with the torched remains of what looked like the cue ball from the pool table. She held it out at arm's length and snapped a picture of it. She set the ball back down in the rubble with loving care and stood there, studying it. She then picked it back up and carried it with her.

We were all pulled from our thoughts by a loud crack and a stream of cursing. I turned and, back in the area that would have been behind the bar, Charlie stood awkwardly, spinning her arms.

"Fuck me, that hurts!" she exclaimed.

"Are you okay?"

"What happened?"

We all rushed over as best we could through the debris to find that her foot had broken down through the floorboards. A piece of the remaining flooring was jabbing into her calf, preventing her from easily extracting her foot. El grabbed her around the back, supporting her and keeping her from falling over. I bent down and grabbed the broken piece that was poking into her and pulled back on it. Cat grabbed a hold with me and, with a resounding crack, we broke it off, falling back onto our butts. Charlie pulled her foot out and El helped her to the floor. Sammi pulled a small first aid kit from her bottomless purse/suitcase. I poured some of my bottled water over her calf and Sammi worked at cleaning it up.

"It's only a scrape. Nothing needing stitches." Sammi said as she cleaned the wound with an iodine pad and applied a large gauze pad, taping it into place.

"Thanks, Sammi." Charlie said with a slight hiss to her breath.

"Oh my God. Guys, look at this!"

We turned to find Cat hovering over the hole left behind from Charlie's foot. Charlie scooted across the dirty floor toward the hole and the rest of us crowded in. "What? I can't see anything." El said, tilting her head trying to see into the hole.

"Hold up." Sammi said, digging into her purse again. She pulled out a small flashlight.

"Seriously?" I asked incredulously.

"What? I believe in being prepared." She answered, flicking it on.

"I guess so!" I laughed and leaned in to see what her flashlight would reveal.

The hole was actually a hidden compartment under the floorboards. Cat reached in and started pulling things out. A canister, about the size of a can of grated parmesan cheese, that read Morton's Salt through the rust spots; a metal canteen that sloshed when she shook it; and a dented metal box about the size of a shoe box. El took the canteen, cracked it open, and took a small sniff. She frowned and shook her head. She tipped it up and poured some of the contents into her palm. It appeared to be just water.

"Holy water, I'd bet." Cat said, almost reverentially.

El chuckled. "Why would you say that?" Cat reached over and stuck a finger into the opening and, after some digging, pulled it out with what appeared to be a rosary hooked on it. "Okay, then." El responded.

"Salt and holy water. I wonder what's in the box?" Sammi quietly said.

"What's in the box?!" I yelled, making everyone jump. They all give me disgusted looks. "Sorry." I sheepishly say. "It's one of my favorite quotes..."

Cat hands the box to me. "You wanna know so bad..."

I look at it. Charlie did a number on it when she went through the floor. There was a large dent in the top. There was a locked latch on the front that had come loose from the damage. I carried the box out to the parking lot and found a rock. I hit the latch a few times and the lid came open. Everyone gathered around. Inside the box was a bundle of cash, a gun, and a small framed photo. The photo was a night time picture of a man. He was sitting on a log and holding a beer out to the camera in a mock toast, grinning ear to ear. His face was dirty and there may have been a smudge of blood at his hairline. In the bottom corner of the photo were some words written in silver ink. "To Ellen. Miss you Love you – Bill"

"Well this is all just creepy as fuck." El finally said.

"Yeah. I'm beginning to freak out a little." I answer.

"My God." Sammi whispers. "Ellen was real. Bill, her dead husband I have to assume, was real."

El holds out her sign. "Maybe Ash was too."

"So, we have a real diner in Florida, with waitress named Doris and a guy who really went missing at The Mystery Spot." Cat says.

"Sammy's apartment." Charlie says in a hushed tone.

"Well..." I say. "We don't really know if a Sam ever lived there guys..."

"Okay. I'll give you that." Charlie said. "But what about the creepy gate thing at the Freeland Cemetery? You can't say that wasn't creepy as all fuck."

"Okay. I will admit to that." I offered.

"Um...and we have a car with real weapons and fake ID's in the trunk." El added.

"And a probable serial killer psychopath, that just happens to be named Dean, on our tails." Sammi ends it.

We all just stand there. Cat does one of those shakes you do when you get a chill up your spine. I take all the contents of the secret hole and put them into the weapon's cache in the trunk of the car. I pull out our picnic supplies and cooler. "Okay. Enough with the creepy, guys...who's hungry?" El shakes her head as if coming out of a dream.

"Yeah. I could eat." Charlie says with a smile.

"You could always eat. I swear to God, you're a bottomless pit!" El says, grinning.

The creep factor ratchets down to bearable levels as we focus on our picnic dinner. We spread out a blanket in the grass off to the side of the lot and eat. It's beginning to get dark as we finish up and clean our mess. Fireflies are starting to blink in the trees and meadow behind the Roadhouse. Sammi and Cat are whispering to each other and then go off, wandering around the parking lot. Later, they call us over to the front of the Roadhouse. They had built a little tower of stones in memorial.

"To the Harvelle's." Sammi says.

"May they rest in peace." Cat adds. We all stand there in respectful silence. "Okay enough emo crap." Cat says suddenly. "Let's check out some stars."

We had chosen tonight for our star watching because it was so wide open out here with hardly a light to be seen, messing up the view. Sam and Dean were known to stop the car, at times, and just look at the stars. Not sure if it was just a recoup time for them or what. A chance for them to draw back and out of the crazy that made up their day to day lives, maybe. But we intended on following Winchester tradition.

We all chose a spot on the car. El and Sammi on the hood and Charlie, Cat, and myself on the trunk. We lay there for what seemed like hours, just gazing at the amazing expanse of stars in the heavens above, each lost in her own thoughts. It was eventually broken up when El broke out in a rousing rendition of 'Kumbaya' to which our groans quickly drowned her out. We tiredly headed back to the hotel and a good night's sleep. For some. I had nightmares of burning buildings.


	12. Every Story Has A Beginning

~12~ Every Story Has A Beginning  
...

We were all a little slow at getting moving the next day. Whether it was the late night or the somber mood from the previous evening, I couldn't say. Personally, I couldn't get certain thoughts out of my head. Namely all the coincidences we'd encountered. The car with the weapons, the cell phones in the glove box, 'Dean', all the real locations. I had been thinking on and off about it all throughout the trip, but last night at Harvelle's? That really hit me hard. They were real people that died in a horrible way. If all these locations and side stories were true, who says Sam and Dean aren't real too?

We stopped at an all you can eat buffet on our way out of town for what ended up being more of a brunch. Charlie blew us all away with her apparent hollow leg. For such a thin person, she could really pack it away! I couldn't keep my thoughts to myself, though, and they spilled over while we were eating.

"Guys. I just have to get this out of my head. You're all going to think I'm nuts, and that's fine, but I can't keep this bottled up any longer."

"Dee, what's up?" Sammi asked.

"And we already think you're nuts, it's why we're here with you!" El added with a grin.

"Bitch." I said.

"Jerk." She answered in kind.

"Anyway, I just can't stop thinking of all the coincidences along this trip. Starting with the car and what's in it's trunk." The girls all looked around at each other, some nodding their heads. They knew exactly where I was going with this.

"The weapons, fake ID's, the phones in the glove box." Cat said.

"The fact that a psycho named Dean owns it and really, really wants it back?" El added. I nodded my head.

"Then all the things on our trip. Like the diner with Doris and the Mystery Spot. Some guy really did go missing there." I said.

"That freaky gate thing at that cemetery." Charlie added with an almost noticeable chill.

"Then Harvelle's..." I left it hang there. There was so much about Harvelle's that was freaking me out. "Not only did the Roadhouse actually exist, but so did Ellen."

"So did Ash, or at least, Dr. Badass." El added with a half smile.

"And it really did burn down." Sammi added.

"The gun, picture, cash..." Charlie said around a french fry.

"...and the salt." I added quietly. We all just sat there staring off into our own minds. You could almost see the gears working in each of our heads. "I just...it just seems all too real. Does that make any sense? I mean, when I planned this trip, I seriously never thought we'd find anything other than, maybe, the Mystery Spot."

"Carver just used-" Cat began.

"-places he'd been to. Yeah, I know. We've batted that idea around before, but I can't help think that that is just too neat an answer. It's one thing to write a story against a familiar backdrop, such as the city you live in, since you can confidently write the location. But all these side stories and places? Not to mention actual people? There's just too much! Okay that's all I wanted to-"

"Wait. Are you saying you are beginning to think that Dean and Sam might be real too?" El asked, almost shocked.

"Umm..." I didn't want to say it out loud, it sounded too crazy then.

"You are!" She exclaimed.

"I guess, I'm not saying they are real, but I'm beginning to at least consider the possibility that they might be. And in all honesty...would it be so bad if they were?" I looked around the table at each of them in turn. Sammi had a thoughtful look on her face, like she may actually be considering my words. Cat was nodding her head and smiling. I had a funny feeling she'd be on board with any crazy idea I threw out there.

"Wait!" Charlie said. "If the guys are real...then wouldn't that presume, then, that all the things they hunt would also be real?"

"Yeah. Not sure I like the idea of all those nasties running around out there." El said.

"That would also mean that the world almost came to a horrible end not too long ago." Sammi added, somberly. We all just stopped short at that comment and stared hard at Sammi. "What? If what you're saying is true, then not that long ago Sam really threw himself, and Lucifer, into the pit, saving us all from the Apocalypse."

We all drifted off into our own thoughts after that comment. Once we got back out to the car, Cat broke the silence. "So, where to now? What's our next stop?"

"We are headed to the beginning of the story...Kansas." I answered.

"Yes! I want to get a reading from Missouri!" Charlie squealed.

"Ah...what if Missouri is a made up character?" I asked.

"Seriously, Dee? They have all been real so far." Cat said.

"Good point and I'd love to meet her!" I grinned.

"I want to see the family home." El said. I looked over at her and smiled.

"Me too." Sammi piped up from the backseat.

"I also have one other stop out that way but it needs to wait until dark." I said.

"Ooo, creepy!" Cat said.

"Can't wait! Let's go!" Charlie said, practically hopping in her seat.

It was only a little over five hours to get to Lawrence. We stopped just inside town to gas up and then popped into a fast food joint for a bite to eat and to decide what to do next. "Okay guys, I have two different houses that could be considered the family home." I said, pulling up a map on my kindle. Everyone leaned in to get a look at it.

"Yes. There appears to be some debate over the actual location on the message boards." Sammi said.

"Actual location? Guys, I can only assume this has to be a made up place." El said. "I can understand Carver being to a diner or Roadhouse, but we're talking an actual house."

"Probably true." I answered. "But worth looking at anyway, right?" There are eager nods and I point out the two spots on the map. "We can drive by each and if we want we can take some pictures."

"Or Charlie can just invite herself in..." Cat said with a smile.

"Oh yeah! I want to see the nursery, damn it!" Charlie said, grinning.

"Great. Listen, I'm okay with trying to get inside with some crazy story or something, but no more B and E, okay?" El said, rolling her eyes.

"Agreed. I'm too young to go to jail." Sammi added.

"If we go to jail, bitch, I got your back! But, no more breaking and entering...for now." Charlie said. She took her finger and crossed her heart in promise.

"How about we get checked into a motel, first, and then go wandering around town?" Cat offered.

We all agreed to that plan, finished our dinners and hit the road. We found a place called the Virginia Inn Motel. It was classic Winchester cheese. Even the name was hilarious...a motel trying to be an inn. We got settled into our rooms and Charlie took the wheel for our excursion around town.

The first house was a two story, light yellow number on a cul de sac. None of us felt like it was anything special. Not that we would know. I mean, we were looking for the fictional home of fictional characters...how the hell would we know if we found it, especially if it didn't exist! Sammi snapped a picture for good measure and we headed in search of the other address.

The second house was a light blue, two story home. It had a partial porch on the front. We sat in the car across the street looking at it. "This is it." Cat quietly said.

"What? How could you know?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah, that and this house is blue. Wasn't it described in the Home book as light green?" El added.

"It just is. See?" Cat pointed to the front right corner of the yard.

"What are we looking at?" I asked.

"Oh my god, I think she's right." Sammi said in a hushed tone and brought her hand up to her mouth.

We all turned and looked closer at the house and the yard. "I guess I'm not seeing it?" Charlie said.

"The stump, Charlie, the stump!" Cat said, pointing again. There at the right corner of the house was the stump of what looked like had been a large tree. "Remember? In the book, Sam has a vision and he recognizes the family home because of the huge twisted tree in the front yard?"

I looked again, now seeing the stump she was referring to. "Just because there is a stump in the yard doesn't mean-" I started.

"Who cares! Let's go!" Charlie said and was climbing out of the car.

"Oh fuck. Here we go again." El sighed and climbed out of the car after her.

"Someone quick come up with a story!" I whispered to Cat and Sammi as we got out after them.

As the five of us approached the door, Sammi maneuvered to the front and rang the doorbell. Thank God for Sammi's cool head. We wait only a minute before a teenaged girl answers the door. "Yes?" she says.

"Hi, um, I know this is going to sound strange, but my friends and I are on a road trip in memory of my grandmother. She just passed and we are visiting places that meant a lot to her. I know it sounds weird, but she raised me when my parents passed in a car accident and well...she spent a good chunk of her life in this house. Would it be okay if we came in and just saw the place again? I visited her quite a few times before my parents, um..." Sammi rattled it all off without a hitch. I was impressed. So, to add to her story, I put a reassuring arm around Sammi's shoulders and gave her a squeeze.

"Um yeah, sure. MOM! Come on in." She held the door wide for us and stepped back, allowing us entry into the house. A blonde woman came in and the girl briefly told her what we wanted.

She held out her hand for a shake. "Hi. Jenny. Of course you can come in. You wouldn't be the first." She ended with a slight chuckle and shook all our hands. We introduced ourselves. "I think it's great, what you're doing for Samantha, here." She said as she led us into the house. Our eyes grew huge as we walked in and looked around, trying to envision the flaming spirit of Mary Winchester banishing the evil poltergeist from her family home.

As we came into the kitchen, keeping up appearances, Sammi said "Oh, Grandma and I used to sit at the kitchen table and play Uno for hours." El patted her on the back. I would have laughed at our antics if Sammi hadn't been selling it so well. She looked all around the kitchen, eyes pausing on the sink. "Would it be okay to see upstairs? Whenever I visited, I always had my own room up there." Sammi asked.

Jenny patted her on the arm. "Of course." As she led us up stairs, Jenny kept up the small talk. "So, was your grandmother born here or..."

"Oh, no. She and her family moved in here when her sons were just little. Grandpa passed away when the kids were still in high school and she just couldn't leave the place. When my parents, her son, died, she finally moved out east to take care of me." Good Lord, I don't know where Sammi was coming up with all this stuff, but it was gold!

We got to the top of the stairs and Sammi went straight for the front corner room. What would have been Sammy's nursery. "This is where I always stayed when I was here." Sammi said with fake remembered fondness in her voice. We all piled into the room which was covered in posters of guys on dirt bikes flying through the air.

"Was it haunted when you were here?" A voice piped up from the corner. We all turned and saw a young boy walking out of a large walk in closet carrying a dirty clothes hamper.

"Ritchie, what have I told you about that? Now take your laundry downstairs, please." The boy made a face and then left the room. "Sorry about that. Boys and their imaginations." Jenny almost sounded nervous.

"No harm and for the record, it was not haunted." Sammi said with a reassuring smile.

I noticed that while Sammi was chatting up Jenny, Charlie and Cat were sneaking pictures on their phones. We got a brief tour of the rest of the upstairs and a peek into the backyard all accompanied by fond remembrances from Sammi. We were thanking Jenny for her kindness and were walking down the sidewalk when Jenny called out after us. "You father's name wasn't Winchester, was it?"

We all stopped dead in our tracks and slowly turned around. "What? No, um, I mean..." Sammi stuttered.

"My apologies. I can see it wasn't. Never mind. You girls enjoy the rest of your trip and my sympathies, Samantha." Jenny said and pulled back into the house and closed the door. We all just stared at each other, gob smacked.

We went back to the car, got in, and just sat there. We were too stunned to even speak. Finally El broke the silence. "You guys caught their names right?"

"I don't think the girl ever said her name, but, yeah." I answered.

"Same names as were given in the Home book. Jenny is the name of the woman who was living in the house when Sam and Dean went to save them from a poltergeist and the spirit of Mary saves the day. Her kids names were Ritchie and...umm..." El trailed off, trying to remember the daughter's name.

"Sari." Charlie quietly said. Again we all fell into silence. Charlie eventually gave one last look out the window, started up the car and took us back to the motel trying to be an inn.


	13. Buskers, Missouri, and the Truth. Oh my!

~13~ Buskers, Missouri, and the Truth. Oh my!  
...

The next day promised to be exciting. Last night, after the craziness of the Winchester home visit, Cat found Missouri in the phone book. We couldn't believe it and flipped out accordingly. She gave her a call and set up a time today for us all to go see her.

"Please let her be just like she is in the book!" I pleaded.

"I know. I loved her!" El said.

"What time is our appointment?" Charlie asked.

"Two o'clock." Cat answered, brushing her hair.

We were all getting ready for the day and were practically bouncing off the walls with excitement. "What are we going to do until then?" Sammi asks. We all just kind of shrugged our shoulders.

"I saw a sign advertising a Busker Festival all weekend." Cat offered.

"What's a busker festival?" I asked.

"Hell if I know, but the word festival says awesome food and, at the least, some great people watching." Cat answered.

"Works for me." El said.

"Yum! Funnel cake! Ooo and fried dough!" Charlie exclaimed.

"I guess all you had to do was mention food!" I said, laughing. "Okay, then. Everyone in favor of checking out the Busker Festival until our meet up with Missouri?"

"Yes! Let's go see some buskers, or eat them, or do whatever it is one does with a busker." Sammi said.

Turns out a busker is a street performer. What a great idea for a festival! We stuffed our faces with food that was sure to clog a few arteries and saw some amazing acts. Juggling, sword swallowing, and magic just to name a few. As we piled into the car to head out to Missouri's I turned to Sammi. "I'm glad you didn't try to eat any buskers."

Everyone laughed with a few eww's mixed in. "Yeah, well, I did see a few buskers that looked pretty yummy." She answered. "Good enough to eat!"

"Ha-ha! A Very Supernatural Christmas!" Cat exclaimed, naming the book Sammi's quote was from. "And I agree, there were some pretty fine buskers out there today!"

"Fuck yeah! You guys see the guy on the stilts with the top hat?" El asked, fanning herself.

"Hot damn, he was gorgeous!" Charlie said.

"Well, I thought that one juggler with the goatee was pretty yummy too." I added.

"Oh yes!" Sammi said, nodding.

With all our hot guy chit chat, we barely noticed the trip and before we knew it, we were pulling up outside Missouri's house. I checked my watch. Quarter to two. I looked at my girls and saw a mixture of emotions: excitement, fear, worry, nervousness. My stomach was a bit queasy at the idea of meeting Missouri now that we were here.

"You guys really think she can read your mind, like in the book?" I asked. They looked around at each other, maybe waiting for someone else to answer first.

"Well, I just don't know. I mean, if the books really are true, we would have to assume so." Cat finally answered.

"That's a big assumption and a leap of faith I'm not sure I'm ready to take quite yet." I said.

"Winchester." Sammi said. I looked at her with a look of confusion. "And I quote 'Your father's name wasn't Winchester, was it?' That was pretty gosh darned huge."

I clenched my jaw. I wanted so hard to believe that Sam and Dean were real. That they were really out there hunting things and saving people like me from the things that go bump in the night, but at the same time it seemed so fantastical. A person that can really read minds?

"I guess there's only one way to find out." El said and she hopped out of the car.

"Hey! Wait up! I'm supposed to be the impulsive one!" Charlie called out, hurrying to catch up with El.

I smiled and shook my head. "I guess she's right! Let's do this!" The rest of us climbed out of the car and made our way up the sidewalk. The door opened just as we caught up with the other two on the front step.

"The Flannel Five, huh?" said the woman who opened the door. She was a heavy set African American woman with kind eyes and a huge smile on her face. She chuckled to herself and held the door open for us. "Well get on in here! No sense letting every bug in Kansas in with you!"

We pulled our jaws off the ground and made our way inside. The woman shut the door behind us, turned and smiled at us. "I'm Missouri. Why don't you make yourselves comfortable in here while I go get us some refreshments." She motioned to a small sitting room and then headed back to other parts of the house. We sat down and looked dumbfounded at each other.

"Did you...?" EL asked Cat quietly.

Cat looked shocked. "No! I never told her that! I just told her that my friends and I were in town for two days and really wanted to meet with her, maybe get some readings. I never even left a name with her!" Cat whispered back.

"Well." I said. "I guess that answers that." I rubbed my hands down the thighs of my jeans, palms suddenly quite sweaty.

"I'm suddenly quite nervous." Sammi said.

"Me too. I feel like a kid about to be scolded by her parents for something." Cat said. El gave a nervous chuckle.

Missouri came back in with some plates and a pie. "I hope you all like apple pie?" she asked, plunking herself down in an open armchair.

Now how perfect was pie? Dean's favorite dessert. "Wow. I didn't know a palm reading came with pie." I mused.

"Well what kind of hostess would I be, child, if I didn't offer you any refreshment? I have tea, coffee, milk, and water if y'all want a drink too." She raised her eyebrows at us. Before anyone could answer she popped back up out of her seat. "Two coffees, a tea, a water, and a milk coming right up, and no, you're not imposing at all."

She left to get drinks and again we all just sat there dumbfounded. "I, um..." El started but trailed off. Not knowing quite what to say. I saw Charlie rub her palms on her jeans too.

Missouri came back in and set out drinks in front of each of us and cut into the pie. She served everyone but Cat, who was perfectly okay with that. "So what brings you girls all the way to Lawrence, Kansas?" she asked.

We just looked around at each other. You'd think we were just asked to explain quantum physics with all the blank looks I saw aimed my way. "Well, ...um. We're on a road trip, of sorts."

"Wait. If you can read minds, why do you have to ask us?" El asked, cutting me off.

"Well, I can only see what's currently there. I ask a question and you all immediately start thinking about the answer to the question. For instance, most of you deferred to Dee, since the trip was her idea. Except Charlie." We all looked over at Charlie, who looked like the proverbial bird that just ate the canary.

"What?" she asked. Looking around at all of us. We looked back at Missouri.

"Thank you, Charlie. It is homemade. I don't buy any of that horrible stuff grocery stores pawn off as pie these days."

We all laugh and it broke the spell of unease that was hanging in the air. Leave it to Charlie to be focused on the food.

"Anyway, you were saying?" Missouri asked, looking at me.

"But, if you can see it in my head why continue to ask?" I was confused.

"I find that to be rude. Digging through people's heads like that! I prefer a nice chat, don't you?"

I chuckle. "I guess so. Well, anyway, we're on a road trip, visiting a bunch of places around the country."

"These aren't your typical tourist spots, though. How're Jenny and the kids, anyhow?"

I think my eyes bugged out of my skull and I was stunned. Even though she had already proven that she could see into our heads, it was still an odd experience and something one doesn't get used to quickly.

"They seem to be doing okay." Sammi said.

"Oh, don't worry yourself, honey." Missouri said, patting Sammi's knee. "You didn't cause any harm by your story. Jenny is a kind soul and would think nothing of it. So, these places you're visiting...?" Her gaze came back to me, leading me to wipe my palms on the legs of my jeans again.

"Um, this sounds so silly...we're visiting places that feature in a few of the books that we all love." I say, unable to make eye contact with her. I'm suddenly embarrassed by it. To an outsider, this must look so strange.

"Ahh, the story of Sam and Dean. Full of tragedy, fear, death, but also the bond of love that can carry one through the fires of Hell and back." She nodded her head sagely.

"Oh! You're familiar with the books?" Sammi asked.

"Nope. Not at all." Missouri said as she stood up. "But look how they have brought you girls together! All of you so different from each other, yet pulled together and becoming close friends because of them." She paused. "So. Who wants to go first?"

"Oh! Me! Please?" Charlie said, hurriedly setting her empty plate down on the small coffee table in front of her. Missouri chuckled and smiled at her. She held out her arm to guide Charlie down a short hall to a door on the left.

Once they were behind closed doors, we all started quietly talking to each other at once.

"Shh!" El finally said. "One at a time."

"She's amazing and scary, all at once." I say.

"I love her!" Cat said, taking a swig of her water.

"I just don't know what to think. I mean she is fucking amazing, I'll give her that, but, yeah. Creepy to have her in your head like that." El said.

We fell into silence until Charlie came out, all smiles. "One of you go on in." she said. Sammi got up and headed down the hall. We decided that we didn't want anyone to miss anything, so we didn't talk about our time with Missouri while someone else was in with her, unable to hear. We would dish all our goodies at dinner, later.

Everyone had had their turn and I was the last one left. I walked down the hall and hesitated at the door, my stomach doing flips. "Well, come on in child! I won't bite!" I heard Missouri say from the room beyond.

I went into a room done in deep purples. It was about ten by ten with a round table in the center, surrounded by chairs. The wall to the right was just one giant book case, littered with books and odd objects that I couldn't identify. The wall to the left was broken by a closed door in the center. I expected Missouri to be sitting at the table with a crystal ball for some reason. There was no crystal ball in sight and a hearty laugh arose from beyond the table. I walked around and there was a bay window with a cushioned window seat. Missouri was sitting there laughing.

"Oh, honey, if you knew how often I got that. Crystal balls are so cliché, don't you think?" She patted the seat near her. I went over and sat on the seat at an angle, facing her.

"Yeah, I suppose they are." I said, joining in her laughter.

"Let's cut to the chase, shall we?" She said, growing serious.

"Um, okay?" I wasn't sure what she wanted.

"How's the car?"

"The..." I swallowed hard. She knows.

"The car, child. Baby?" She clarified, complete with eye roll.

"The car." I cleared my throat. I felt like I was sitting in the principal's office all of sudden. "The car is fine. Why do you ask that?"

"Dean just loves that car." She said this almost wistfully, staring into the distance for a minute. I'm stunned for a moment and then realized she could have learned any number of things from the girls before she got to me. "You're right, I have learned quite a bit from your friends and I wouldn't be much of a friend if I didn't at least ask after his car, would I?"

"His car...friend...so...you know Dean?" I hesitantly asked.

"Yes. Oh, I've known he and his brother since they were in diapers. There has always been some sort of..hmm...some sort of force surrounding their family. I've never really been able to put my finger on it."

"His brother...Dean has a brother."

"Well, surely you know. Sam?"

"Wait...just...wait a gosh darned minute! Are you telling me...?"

"Yes, dear."

I suddenly felt like I couldn't breathe and the room started to spin. I blinked my eyes, hard, a few times, trying to get the room to slow down.

"So...the Hell's gate? The special children? Dean's soul selling deal and his..." I swallowed hard. "His subsequent trip to ..." She nodded her head at me and rested her hand on my knee. "So the Apocalypse...?"

"What I can say is that much of what you're asking about has, indeed, happened." I got up and started pacing about the room. Full of nervous energy, I couldn't sit still. "I can't speak for all of it, now. I don't know of every crazy predicament they've gotten themselves caught up in over the years, but I do know about some of it."

"I think I'm gonna be sick." I said. I stared hard at her, as if I could see into her head and into the truth, or falseness, of her words if I looked hard and long enough. She smiled warmly at me.

"Don't be silly! Take a few deep breaths and relax." She leaned back in her seat and studied me. "So, enjoying the car?" She said it with a conspiratorial gleam in her eye.

"I...um." I stopped pacing. Her sudden change of topic caught me off guard. "Um, yeah. The car is amazing. I love driving it."

"Well. I think Dean would salt and burn half the country in his attempts to get it back." She said with a chuckle. "That boy..." Her voice faded out as she sat remembering something. "I've talked to him and Sam more in the last week or so, than in the last five years!"

"I really screwed up, huh?" I felt horrible now. If everything was true, if Dean and Sam really did exist and were out there hunting evil, then I've put a big dent in the works. How could they do any of it without their car, or even the contents of the trunk.

"Oh. I don't think so. You had no idea about the car at the beginning. Quite honestly? I've been getting a kick out of it. I haven't seen him this worked up since the time Sam almost totaled the car when Dean was teaching him how to drive." She sighed and then laughed again.

"So...you're not going to turn us in to the cops or something?"

"Well, now, that is a good question." My stomach dropped out from under me. Here it came. Road trip over. Why didn't I think of this before we came here! "On the one hand..." she said "I think it's pretty funny. On the other hand, I would be remiss in my duties as a friend if I didn't let him know I saw his car." I sighed and visibly sank down into my seat.

"Well, we had fun while it lasted, I suppose." I studied my hands in my lap. We came so close to finishing our trip too. As much as I felt bad about having their car, I also didn't want this trip to ever end. It has been such a great time with the girls; out on the road without any deadlines or places to be. We were free.

"Tell you what. I can see you had only a few more stops to make. How about I tell Dean that you were here and headed to Bobby's place." My head jerked up so fast, my neck snapped.

"Really?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"I don't suppose he needs to know there are two other stops before you get there, right?" She smiled at me.

I walked over to her, leaned over, and gave her a big hug. "Thank you! You have no idea what this means to me!" She chuckled and returned my hug.

"That car better be in one piece when you get to Bobby's though! You understand me, child?" She said, sternly.

"Yes ma'am!" I smiled. I was so excited that she wasn't going to blow us in, that I almost forgot that she had pretty much confirmed that it was all true. How did I even begin to convince the girls of what was just revealed to me?

We headed out to the others and we all said our goodbyes. I gave Missouri one last hug and thanked her for everything. "How much do we owe you?" I asked digging into my pocket.

"Are you kidding me? You five have provided me with more entertainment this afternoon than I normally get in a month! You just take care of yourselves, you hear me?" We all thanked her profusely and headed out.

As we were walking down the sidewalk, she called out to us. "You take care of that car, or so help you, there will be hell to pay and not from me!" She waved at us and added "And Cat, Blessed Be!" With that she turned and walked back into her home.

"What was that all about?" EL asked.

"I'll tell you over dinner. I think I need a drink." I answered as we got to the car. El looked at me strangely as I ran my hand lovingly along Baby's hood.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I just loved Missouri! Wish she could return for an episode... FYI...Lawrence, KS really does have a Buskers Festival...if I ever have the opportunity to visit, I think I'll have to plan my trip around it! Sounds like a blast!


	14. Margaritas and Mayhem

~14~ Margaritas and Mayhem  
...

El took the wheel with me sitting in the front with her. I was pretty much lost in my thoughts and not paying attention to any discussion going on around me. Just sitting in the car meant so much more than it did before. I was sitting where Sam, and sometimes Dean, have sat on countless occasions. Heck, even John and Mary Winchester, their parents, had even sat here.

I ran my hand across the glove box and felt a twinge of guilt over all the cell phones that we shipped off to California. It was as if a switch had been flipped in my head. The Dean who had been hounding us for the last two weeks had gone from a raving lunatic to the guy who had saved the entire human race, a hero. My emotions were all over the map. Excitement that the stories were true; guilt over the fact that we had, essentially, stolen their car; wonder over the idea that I was sitting in what was the most important object in the universe; fear over how the guys, Dean specifically, would react when they finally caught up to us at Bobby's place; but ending with sadness.

When I thought back over all the books, going on the presumption that all of them were true, the over-arcing emotion was sadness. The guys had been through horrors beyond what, it seems, any human could, or should, have to endure. Their mother taken by a demon when they were still babes and their father taking them on the road throughout their childhood in his relentless search for the demon who had done it. Hunting horrors when other kids their age were winning football games, going to prom and falling in love. Even though Sam tried to get back into a normal life, the evil followed him to college, and he lost his girlfriend the same way he had lost his mom. They lost their father to the very demon who had taken their mother. Sam died and Dean, in the midst of his overwhelming grief, made a deal with the devil, essentially, to get him back. Dean spent, what to him, was forty years in hell as a result. While there, Dean knocked over the first domino leading to the apocalypse. Sam set himself on a course of vengeance, much like his father's, that ended up knocking over the final domino. In the end, Sammy ended up tossing himself into the Pit to stop the apocalypse before Lucifer could get it started. The books stopped there, but wasn't that enough? They had both been to Hell and back, presumably since Missouri spoke of Sam as well, lost everyone they'd ever loved, including each other, and have received nothing in return.

"I said hey!" El said, smacking my arm to get my attention. I looked over at her. We had stopped and I saw everyone walking across the parking lot toward a restaurant.

"Yeah, sorry, lost in my thoughts."

"You okay? What did Missouri say in there that's got you like this?" She looked at me, the concern plain on her face.

"It's nothing. I'll fill you all in. First, let's eat. I'm starving." I hopped out of the car before she could press further.

El had found us a mexican restaurant and they were nice enough to seat us in a round corner booth removed from most of the other patrons. The music being piped into the restaurant was on the loud side, giving us a sense of privacy. We all looked over the menus, made our orders and sat chatting about nothing important until our food came.

Once the meal was finished and we all sat there nursing our various drinks, El finally poked at it again. "So? Spill. What did Missouri say to you that's got you all up in your own head and acting all morose?"

"Well...what I have to share is pretty crazy...I want to know what she told you guys first. Did you believe her? Was she for real?" That sparked a lot of instant chatter with Charlie coming out on top.

"Nicky and I are meant for each other!" She squealed.

"Seriously?" El said. "You have a chance to meet Missouri and you talk love life?" We all laughed.

"I asked her if Nicky and I were ever going to meet and if we would be a thing. She said she didn't know Nicky but then laid out what my personality traits were, for good and bad, and then the traits I should look for in a partner. From what I know of Nicky, he's a perfect match!"

"So, she told you nothing that any perceptive person couldn't have told you." Sammi said.

"Well, not really." Charlie said. "Some of those personality traits aren't necessarily ones that I would admit to having to others, let alone to myself." She quieted down and sat there fiddling with the corner of her napkin.

"What about you, Sammi?" I asked, taking the focus off of Charlie and any insecurity she was feeling.

"I've been a nervous wreck that we are going to get caught by the cops. So I asked her about that. She assured me that the car had not been reported as stolen and currently wasn't being sought by any authorities. She also told me I could stop worrying about all the weapons riding around in the trunk. I never said anything about them. She just knew."

"Ooo, cool." Cat said and everyone else nodded their heads in agreement. I just grinned to myself. Of course she would know about the weapons since she had become a close family friend to the Winchesters. "She talked to me about my first love." Cat continued.

"Your first love?" Charlie asked. "You mean Stan?"

Cat studied her margarita a moment. "No. Not Stan." We all looked at her in confusion. We had all talked about past loves before. She had always told hilarious stories of Stan, the comic book man. "You see..." she continued. "Before Stan, long before Stan, there had been Patrick." We all exchanged glances. This was new.

"Patrick? You never mentioned Patrick before." El said.

"Patrick was...he was my everything." I noticed the past tense and El and I shared a look. "He got real sick and...well, he's gone now. Missouri knew all about him. Guys, I have never told anyone about him, but she knew. We talked for a bit more about it all, but yeah, she's for real." Sammi and I were sitting closest to her and we both leaned in and hugged her.

"I have to agree with Cat. Missouri is for real. I won't get into all the emotional baggage we talked about, but yeah. Which brings us to you, Dee." said El. Everyone turned their eyes my way. How to tell them?

"Um, well you want the good news or the bad news first?"

"Oh, always start with the bad news so that we can end on a high note." Charlie said and everyone nodded in agreement.

I took a deep breath. "Ok, then, bad news. Missouri said she couldn't NOT report the car." That's all I said. I just let it hang there. I got some confused looks at first as they all processed what I had said. The confusion slowly, and stubbornly for a few, changed over to dawning shock.

"Wait." Sammi said. "Report the car to who?" The looks I received from everyone made me realize that they were all holding onto their disbelief and that what I said next would most assuredly push them past it.

"Dean." Eyes grew huge.

"She..." Cat started, unable to put thought to word.

"She knows Dean?" Charlie finished for her. El just searched my face.

"She said she wouldn't be much of a friend if she didn't tell the boys that she had seen their car." I said, nodding my head.

Now I know what I looked like in the car on the way here. The varied emotions I saw flitting across their faces ranged from shock and excitement, to fear and guilt.

"So, are you telling us it's all real? All of it? Sam and Dean, Hell, demons, the apocalypse?" El asked in shock.

"Yup. Missouri said she's known the boys since they were in diapers and although she doesn't know every adventure that they have been on, she could assure me it was all true. Honestly, thinking of Dean in diapers cracks me up."

"What the fuck...this is almost too much to take in." Charlie said, still reeling from the news.

"Wait, tell me again how this is bad news?" Cat said. "I mean...the guys are real! This is awesome!"

"I believe the bad news was that Missouri is going to tell the guys that we are here. Road trip over." Sammi pointed out.

"Oh." Cat frowned. "Then what's the good news? I mean is there more other than the guys being real?"

"She said she was going to tell them we were on our way to Bobby's place." I told them.

"Well we are, aren't we?" El asked. She thought about it for a minute. "Wait. She's telling them we are on our way there now?" She smiled. Charlie looked between El and I confused.

"She said he didn't need to know we had a few other stops in between." I smiled.

"Awesome!" Cat said.

The waitress came by, putting an end to our talk as I took care of the bill. As we headed out to the car Sammi asked "So what now?"

"Same as before. Road trip as planned, but now we won't have psycho Dean tailing us all the way." I said grinning. I got into the driver's seat this time, lovingly running my fingers across the steering wheel.

El suddenly gasped and we all turned to her. Her face had gone a bit pale and then it started to flush bright pink. "What the heck? You okay, El?" I asked.

"I'm going to meet Dean. Dean Winchester." She said this in a tone of awe.

We looked at each other and spoke without saying anything. I suddenly found myself blushing as well. We both jumped out of the car we had just gotten into and ran back to the trunk. I could hear the others asking what the heck we were up to. I struggled with the keys to get the trunk open. We got the blanket thrown back and the hidden weapons compartment open. El leaned in and grabbed the cigar box and opened it. We each pulled out a handful of fake IDs and stared at Sam and Dean Winchester.

"Holy fuck, he's hot." El said.

"I second that." I said. We looked at each other and started giggling like school girls. Cat came around the end of the car and looked at us like we'd completely lost our minds.

"What are you two up to back here?" She noticed the IDs in our hands and grabbed a few. "Oh! I see! Oh my!" She started giggling with us. Soon all of us were back there passing the IDs around and pretty much loosing our shit.

"Man I can barely see these." Charlie said at one point causing me to look around. It was getting dark and street lights were just beginning to flick on.

"That's because it's getting dark and we have somewhere else to be!" We all took one last longing look at the guys and then put the IDs back.

Trunk in order and back in the car, I started her up and we headed out. It didn't take us long to travel out of town and down the road a ways to the Stull Cemetery. I paused the car outside the entrance, not as eager as before to be here. "Um, guys. Stull Cemetery. The place where Sammy tossed himself and Lucifer into the Pit. It seems a little more...I don't know...heavy? Knowing Sam is real and that he really did that is almost too much to take in."

El leaned forward from the back and patted my shoulder. "Let's do this. I have the perfect soundtrack for the occasion too." I could hear her digging around in the box of cassettes and then she leans over the seat and pops a tape into the cassette deck. There was silence for a moment and then 'gunter glieben glauchen globen' comes forth from the speakers. Def Leppard's Rock of Ages started up. It was the song Dean blasted as he drove into this very cemetery to stand by his brother in his hour of need.

We all smiled at each other and then said, along with the song, "It's better to burn out, than fade away!"

With that I popped Baby back into drive and slowly rolled us in through the gates and up a slow rise. The cemetery looked like it had seen better days. Head stones were broken or missing altogether. Some were simply wooden crosses. Weeds were growing up all over the place. We came up over the rise and passed a windmill silhouetted against the twilight sky. It looked as if it could fall over at any moment. We rolled down the other side of the small hill and I brought us to a stop.

At first, we all just sat there. The engine and radio silenced as well as the car's occupants. "Welp...we're gonna need flashlights. Better get them out of the trunk before it's full on dark." Cat said, getting out. We all followed her lead and made our way to the trunk to get our flashlights. Charlie and El couldn't find theirs, so El paired up with Cat and Charlie hung with me.

I turned and shone my light up at the windmill. It all seemed so surreal. It made me think of our time at Harvelle's. People had died here, essentially. As I brought my flashlight back around to the ground and the others, the beam from my light glinted off something in the grass off in front of the car. "What was that?" Charlie asked.

"I don't know." We made our way over to where we could see even more sparks of light being reflected back at us. The others came over to see what we were looking at. I crouched down, dug through the grass and weeds a bit and came up with a piece of glass. "Just some broken glass."

Sammi crouched down and started picking through the pieces as well and came up with one she held up for us all to see. "I don't think this is just any glass..." What she held looked like the rounded opening of a bottle. "This was a bottle."

"You don't think that it's..." El crouched down too and started picking through the glass, coming up with a piece of her own. "You think an actual angel of the Lord touched this?"

We all picked through the pieces and each took one to keep.

"Souvenirs of a Holy Molotov. Could this day get any stranger?" Cat wondered, looking at the glass in her hand with a look of awe.

"Hey, Assbutts!" Sammi called. We hadn't noticed that she had wandered off.

"Seriously, Sammi?" Cat said with a bit of a grin in her voice.

"Yes, seriously. You guys have got to come look at this!" We all made our way over to where she stood. She was shining her light down at a patch of dead grass.

"Dead grass. Congratulations, assbutt." Cat responded, all of us chuckling at their good-natured ribbing. But Sammi ignored the jibe and just slowly swept her flashlight beam out from where it was. The grass was dead in a rough circle, about seven or eight feet in diameter. Our laughing died out and you could hear the crickets chirping in the distance.

"Holy fuck. This is it. This is where the rings went down." El said in a hushed voice. We all swept our lights around the circle of dead grass. "I mean, what else could it be?" I turned and swept my flashlight out across the cemetery and back again to the circle. There was no other dead grass to be seen. This was the only patch I could spot.

Charlie held her foot out, tentatively, over the grass and slowly stepped into the circle. We all just looked at her. I'm not sure what we were waiting for. For the ground to swallow her up? For her to suddenly drop into a coma? For the record, nothing 'supernatural' happened. Charlie had paused, probably waiting for something to happen, herself, and then slowly crouched down and lay her hand upon the dead grass. I noticed her eyes were closed in the ambient light shining onto her face. Sammi crouched down, where she was, and did the same.

"We should do a libation." El said.

"A what?" I asked.

"Similar to what you guys did out at the Canyon. When you poured some of your drinks out, you were toasting Dean, in a fashion. A libation is the pouring out of a drink, usually alcohol, as an offering to a spirit or to honor someone who has passed. Too bad we don't have any alcohol. We could do a libation for Sam, Dean, Adam, any hunter, really who has ever given their lives in secret to protect humanity."

"Well." Cat said. "I may be able to help with that if I can have the keys to the car?" She held her hand out to me.

"Umm. Okay...?" I handed her the keys and she disappeared into the dark. While we waited, I looked out into the dark around us. It seemed oppressive, like a physical force or weight on me. I'm not sure if it was the mood or the fact that we were in a cemetery and I was just getting creeped out, but it sent a chill down my spine.

We heard the trunk open and then slam shut again. Cat reappeared with her hands full. She made her way around the circle, handing each of us a tiny little bottle. "What are these?" I ask.

"I may have...borrowed...them from the mini bar a few motels back." She answered. I just closed my eyes and shook my head, grinning. "Okay, so, how does this work?"

"Well, you pour some out and then drink the rest. I don't know of any particulars, really, but I suppose in our case we could just each individually think of all the hunters out there that are fighting the good fight in the shadows of society. Some giving their lives in the fight against evil without anyone being any the wiser." El answered.

"Sounds like a plan." Sammi said. So we all cracked the little twist caps off our bottles and just paused, looking around the circle. We, one by one, held our bottles out over the circle of dead grass, marking the spot where Sammy had thrown himself into the Pit, dragging his half brother Adam with him.

"To those who have given their lives hunting things, saving people." El said without a speck of humor. We all tipped our bottles and poured a bit of liquor out into the grass and then drank down the remaining alcohol.

"Para los santos" Charlie whispered.

"What's that mean?" Cat wondered.

"It's cuban. It means 'for the saints'." She answered. We nodded our heads. It was fitting.

Suddenly there was a snap of a twig nearby. We all froze. My heart went into over drive and I'm sure I wasn't the only one. I couldn't bring myself to bring my light around. I was afraid to see what was out there. Sammi, the level headed one, slowly brought her flashlight up and pointed it back behind Cat and El, who both slowly turned as the light passed them. There was a rustle of weeds off to the left of them and we all whipped our lights over in that direction to see the gruesome face of a possum hissing at us from behind a broken headstone. We all jumped back and gasped.

"Possum!" Cat squealed and we all let out a collective sigh of relief and embarrassment.

"Man." El said. "If Dean were here, he'd call us all a bunch of fucking pantywaists!"

"That was scary!" I said, breathless.

"Nice quote, Dee! See? You can get one in there once in a while!" Sammi laughed.

After the possum broke up our little moment, we split up and explored the cemetery a bit. Some of the wooden crosses must have been here for ages and I wondered how old this cemetery really was. Cat and El came upon an old chapel that was slowly crumbling in on itself. As much as we wanted to explore inside, it just didn't look structurally sound and we decided on the side of safety.

"Hey wait." Charlie said to me at one point, grabbing my arm. "What did that headstone say?" She was pointing back at some headstones we had just passed which, amazingly, hadn't broken or crumbled away yet. I turned my flashlight back and we crouched down in front of it, trying to make out the faded engravings.

"Looks like..." I said, squinting at the stone.

"Campbell." Charlie said. We both looked at each other, silently asking each other the same thing. Could it be? Some of Mary Winchester's ancestors? "Hey guys! Come here!" Charlie called across the dark to the others.

As they gathered around I said, "It looks like it says...Jacob? Maybe? Jacob Campbell?"

"A Campbell, huh?" Sammi said, squatting down, herself, to take a look.

"Cool. You think it's family?" El pondered.

"Guess we'll never-" My comment is cut off by the bleat of a siren. We all froze, eyes wide, like deer caught in the headlights. We quickly turned off our flashlights and snuck back to the Impala. Charlie volunteered to crest the hill and see what was up.

She ducked down and crept up the hill, looking like she'd done that sort of thing all her life. She was soon out of sight and my night vision hadn't adjusted to the lack of flashlights yet. We waited, hearts racing.

"Hello? We know you kids are out here! What have we said about messing around out here after dark? Someone's going to get hurt!" A male voice came out of the night off to the right a bit.

"Aww." Cat whispered. "He called us kids." I could almost hear the grin in her voice.

We just about jumped out of our skins when Charlie was suddenly in our midst again. El had to slap her hand over Sammi's mouth, as she let out a squeal. "Okay, here's what's up. There's a cop car out on the road. They're pulled off past the gate facing away from the direction we need to go. They have gotten out and are headed into the cemetery on foot." she whispered

No sooner had she said it, than we all spied the flash of their flashlights. Charlie grabbed something off the ground, stood, and chucked it as hard as she could toward the back corner of the cemetery where the collapsed chapel was. She had a pretty good arm on her. We heard the rock ding off the stones of the chapel and saw the flashlight beams dart off in that direction.

"Okay. We give them plenty of time to work their way back there and then we get the fuck outta here." Charlie whispered.

"But the doors on the car squeak horribly. They'll hear us." Sammi said. We were silent for a moment, thinking.

"We all get in via the back driver's side door. It is the quietest one. Charlie in first, so she can crawl over the seat and take the wheel." I said and Cat handed the keys to her. She got a devilish grin on her face.

"Okay. Now's the time." El motioned toward the cops who were just about to the chapel. "Let's boogy."

Keeping a hand on the back of the one in front of us, we slowly crept over to the car. Charlie eased the back door open and climbed in. As soon as she was over the seat Cat followed right behind, Sammi and El behind her, and I brought up the rear. I slowly eased the door shut behind me. It didn't close all the way and wouldn't without a good slam. I sat on the floor at everybody's feet and just pulled on the handle of the door, willing it to stay closed during our great escape.

"Go. GO!" Cat whispered up to Charlie who cranked up Baby and practically peeled out. The engine seemed so loud after the quiet of sneaking around, I thought for sure we were toast.

"WooHoo!" Charlie let out a hoot and had us spinning out of the gate before we knew it. "Laters, boys!" She called as she slammed the brakes, popped it into drive, and once again peeled out, leaving the cops and the cemetery in our dust. We all cheered and laughed. I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt and tears fell down my face.

About five minutes later, Charlie pulled off onto a side street and cut the lights. "Okay, guys, get that door shut proper and get buckled in."

"Now she tells us to buckle in. Bitch." El said, tongue in cheek.

"Jerk!" Charlie responded.

I tried to get out but was tangled in everyone's legs. El opened the door and just about fell out of the car. She turned back, and upon seeing me on the floor of the car, started laughing all over again. She reached in and helped me up into the seat and then shut the door. After she slid into the front, we were off again.

Twenty minutes later, Charlie had us pulled into a bar on the outskirts of Lawrence. We continued laughing right through our first round of drinks. "Oh my god. If you guys could have seen the looks on those cops faces when our headlights hit them!" Charlie said between bouts of laughter, wiping tears from her own eyes.

"Best time, ever!" Cat said and raised her glass. We all did the same. "To the Flannel Five, Sammy, and Baby!" she said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: So, the Stull Cemetery really does exist outside Lawrence. It is believed to contain an actual doorway to Hell and is considered haunted. There used to be a chapel there that has since crumbled to the ground. The windmill was my own addition, or rather, 'Carver Edlund's'.


	15. To Each Their Own

~15~ To Each Their Own  
...

We woke early the next day both eager to see what lay ahead, but also hesitant to leave Lawrence. It was the birthplace of the whole thing, after all. We swung by the local cemetery and paid our respects to Mary Winchester, laying some wildflowers at her grave on our way out of town. It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining brightly as it came over the horizon, with little cotton ball clouds making their way lazily across the sky.

El was driving with trusty Sammi at her side navigating. Cat had her Nook out and was re-reading The Real Ghostbusters. The book where Dean and Sam find themselves in the middle of the first ever Supernatural book convention in Vermilion, Ohio. It was a great book with lessons learned and lives saved. Vermilion was our ultimate destination with an overnight in Terre Haute on the way. Charlie was in the middle of the back seat with her MP3 player on listening to some sort of podcast on classic car rebuilding, something or other. Sounded boring to me but she had her head back against the seat, eyes closed, and a heavenly smile on her face. She was pleased as a pig in mud, as my Pop always liked to say. I sat at the other window and stared at the passing scenery out the window, not really thinking of anything in particular; just enjoying the breeze on my face from the open windows and the fresh country air filling my lungs.

About an hour or two into our trip, my cell rang. I checked the screen and smiled. "Hello?"

"Is this Dee?"

"Yes it is. Missouri?"

"Ah! Good! Yes, it's Missouri. You all get out okay this morning?"

"Yes we did. We're about an hour down the road. Why?"

"Well, when I called Dean about the car, he said that he and Sam were about two hours out of Lawrence. They are headed here for a brief visit and then will be heading straight for Bobby's. I wanted to make sure you girls got out of town before they showed up."

"Oh, wow! Thanks! How did they know we were in Lawrence, I wonder?" I caught El's eyes in the rear view mirror.

"I think they connected the dots of some of your previous stops and just assumed you'd come here eventually."

"Thank you so much, Missouri. We really owe you. I mean that! If you ever need anything that you think one of us could help you with, you just let me know."

"Oh you know I'll hold you to that, girl! Now, y'all be safe, enjoy the rest of your trip, and the boys will be waiting for you at Bobby's place. I don't envy you your first meeting with them, though. Oh girl! I told him he can't kill you, but I guarantee nothing beyond that!" She chuckled over the line.

"Thanks, again, Missouri. You take care of yourself." I chuckled in return. Her laugh was rather infectious.

"Don't you worry about me, none. Take care, hon." She hung up and I did likewise.

"The guys are in Lawrence?" Cat asked, shocked. She elbowed Charlie, who had missed the entire call while wrapped up in her pod cast.

Charlie grunted, turned off her MP3 player and looked at Cat. She noticed that Cat and everyone else were looking at me, so she turned to me. "What?"

"Missouri called. She wanted to make sure we were out of town already. The guys were about two hours out of Lawrence when she called them this morning. She didn't want us to cross paths."

"Missouri has your number?" Charlie asked.

I laughed. "Seriously? That's your take away? Yes. I gave her my number before we left just in case there was trouble with the guys and she needed to reach us."

"Oh. Good thinking, Dee." She answered, putting her earbuds back in and starting her pod cast back up.

I rolled my eyes. I only wish I could face the many problems in my life the way Charlie seemed to float through her days. She didn't let much ruffle her feathers. It was a refreshing take on life and I think I needed to give it a try. Maybe after the trip. "She said they were going to swing by and give her a brief visit and then head to Bobby's, so we are in the clear for the rest of our trip."

I could see the edge of El's eyes crinkle as she smiled. "Hell yes!" She said, patting the steering wheel.

The rest of the trip to Terre Haute was pretty uneventful. We got in around seven that evening to the local Motel 6. It had this futuristic decorating theme going on that had us all cracking up. It was more like a futuristic theme from the 50's, making it not so futuristic.

The trip to Vermilion was only about five hours so we didn't intend to make too early of a start the next day. We had no real plans to do or see anything in particular in Vermilion. I had already made us reservations at The Pineview Hotel, where the Supernatural Convention took place in the book. Well, I guess, where it took place in real life too. Still trying to wrap my head around all that. At the hotel there are some nice nature hikes the guests can help themselves to and there are some extensive gardens on the grounds. We planned on relaxing the rest of the evening there, spending the next full day doing whatever our hearts desired, and then leaving the following day.

I think I was over-eager to get there, though, because I was up long before any of the others the next morning. I slipped out of the room and took a brief stroll around the motel grounds. I sat on a bench outside the motel office and decided to give Nicky a long overdue call.

"Yo, it's Nick."

"Heya Nicky! How are you doing? How's the jaw?"

"Dee! Jaw is doing much better. Doesn't hurt too much anymore. How are you guys doin?"

"We're doing good...great in fact. The car is running smoothly and ...um..."

"What, Dee? What's wrong with my car? I can hear it in your voice."

"Well, it's uh..it's not really your car, Nicky."

"What? Is so. It is now. Listen, Dee, those dicks will never find you. You don't have anything to worry about!"

"That's the thing, Nicky...they sort of already have."

"Already have...already have what?"

"They've already found us, in a manner of speaking. They intend on picking up their car at the last stop on our tour."

"Well, then, you don't go to the last stop. That's easy."

"You don't understand, Nick. These guys...they...forget it. You wouldn't understand. I'm giving them their car back, Nicky. I'm sorry. I know you'll be mad at me, but I have to do this." I was met with silence on the other end of the line. "It's all they have left of their family, Nick. The car belonged to their father who pretty much gave up his life for them and I can't not give it back to them." Still silence. "Nicky? You still there?" I hear a sigh come across the line.

"Yeah. I'm here. I guess I shouldn't have expected anything different from you, huh, Dee? Always did do the right thing..."

"Nicky..."

"No. Dee, it's cool. Do what you think is best. You will anyway. How will you get home if you give them the car back?"

"To be honest...the thought hadn't even crossed my mind. I'll deal with that little detail later, I guess. Listen, Nicky, thanks for everything. I mean it. The money, the car...everything! We have had a great time and I'll never forget this." I could almost hear him blushing. He never could take gratitude and compliments very well.

"Pft...stop. Stop. S'cool. Enjoy the rest of your trip and call me if you need a pick up from the airport or anything." He chuckled. We were square. I wasn't originally sure how he was going to take the news of not getting the car back, but he took it better than expected. Maybe my cousin is starting to grow up a bit. Funny, I may have Dean to thank for that.

"Ok. Bye Nicky. Love you!"

"Yeah. Whatever. Laters." The line went dead. Not one for the mushy stuff was Nicky.

When I got back to the room, everyone was waiting for me. I gathered up my stuff, we loaded up the car, and we were on the road by nine. Next stop Vermilion, Ohio. Charlie drove the whole way and, with a stop for lunch, we were pulling in to the Pineview around three that afternoon. When we checked in we were informed of a dinner buffet being served that evening in the back garden.

We were all looking forward to some relaxation and some personal time. We had agreed that this stop would be for individual pursuits. After being cooped up in the car and small motel rooms for a couple weeks now, we were ready for some 'me' time. We were all getting our own rooms, too.

When I got into my room I set my bags on the bed and flopped into a side chair. The hotel and rooms were all done in natural woods with throw rugs placed in rooms and other strategic places. After being an orphanage, the hotel used to be an opulent way station for the ridiculously wealthy. They would come here and get pampered with spa treatments and it was only a short drive to the shores of Lake Erie. I planned on taking in some of those spa treatments tonight before bed. They did some sort of warm mud bath thing that was supposed to do wonders for your skin. Tomorrow I was going to take in some of the nature trails and gardens, maybe do some reading, pull out the camera and take some photos, and sleep. Yes, I planned on taking an afternoon nap!

We all met down in the lobby at quarter after five for dinner. As we headed out to the back garden area I asked what everyone's plans were.

"I'm going to take Baby into town and give her the works." Charlie said. "Oil change, a complete engine tune up, a wash and wax. It's going to be good." She said it all with a smile.

"I'm tagging along. Charlie's going to drop me in town. There's a few local craft shops and a little museum I want to check out." Sammi added.

"Ten a.m. too early?" Charlie asked her.

"No. That sounds great." Sammi answered as we came upon the buffet. There was a central line of tables with food set out and then scattered around the garden were white, linen covered tables to sit at. A couple of waiters were wandering among the guests getting drinks from the bar inside.

As we got into the small line that had formed, El spoke up. "Charlie can you give me a lift to the beach on your way out? I want to find a sunny patch of sand, soak up some rays, and read a book. You can pick me up whenever you're done with the car stuff."

"Yeah, sounds good. Shouldn't be a problem." Charlie said with a smile.

"Well I am going to see how many items on their spa menu I can get crossed off." Cat said. "They have a hot stone therapy I've always wanted to try and the mud bath? I can't wait! How about you, Dee?"

"Well I'm getting one of those mud baths tonight. Tomorrow I plan on wandering the nature trails and gardens, take some pictures and just be generally lazy."

We got to the head of the line and took in the buffet. It was amazing! There was a fruit salad, tossed salad, and a pasta salad. There were loaves of fresh bread ready to be sliced to fit your appetite, three different kinds of cooked vegetables, some sort of roasted potatoes with dill, twice baked potatoes, and angel hair pasta al fredo. As for meats, there was stuffed chicken breast, ham off the bone, and a huge roast they were slicing to taste. We hadn't eaten this well the whole trip. I thought it would be your usual bland fare that you normally get at a wedding reception, but the food was fantastic and we all went up for seconds.

Afterward, everyone retired to their rooms, too stuffed to even contemplate more. Except for me, of course, I had a date with a warm mud bath. Words cannot describe it. I was leery at first, but once I was in it, I didn't want to get out. You know that amazing feeling you get when wet sand squishes up between your toes, or you curl your toes into thick soft carpet, or even wearing a brand new pair of thick socks? It's a feeling that can't quite be described. Now take that feeling and magnify it across your whole body and you'll get an idea what this mud bath was like. I was so completely relaxed by the time I got cleaned up and back to my room and as an added bonus, my skin was as soft as a newborn baby's behind.

The next morning we all met at the little breakfast buffet, that paled in comparison to last night's feast, but was still delicious. Everyone was dressed for their various activities. I raved about the mud bath and everyone agreed they just might have to try it before our stay was over. After everyone left and Cat headed off to the hotel's spa, I swung by my room to pick up my camera, a small notebook, and of course a bottle of water. Sammi's words of wisdom still ringing in my head, "Stay hydrated, ya idjit." I stopped at the front desk to pick up a little map they had there of the grounds and the various trails available for walking. The surrounding area was pretty flat but there were a couple small rises. All in all, nothing I couldn't handle even on my worst day.

I spent most of the day hiking and walking the trails. I sometimes wondered if I was the only person out there. I passed an older couple headed back to the hotel on my way out and that was it. The woodlands were full of birdsong and the meadows full of butterflies. I took a lot of pictures and stopped around noon in a small clearing in the woods for a snack. By about three o'clock my trail came out into some overgrown gardens at the back of the property. They hadn't been cared for in a few years, it looked like. Perhaps the hotel was getting ready to convert the area to another purpose. I could still make out where paths through flowerbeds once lay and wandered around a bit.

It was a bit creepy at times and made me think of Dean and Sam being here. No sooner had I thought about them, than I came around a bend in the path and there, before me, was a small, weeded cemetery. It was surrounded by a low, falling apart fence. I walked in and looked around. This was the cemetery that was featured in the book. I'll have to tell the girls when I get back and bring them all down here. They'll love it. There was a large oak tree at the back corner of the cemetery, providing a huge spread of shade and I thought it would make a great spot for a rest and do some journaling.

As I made my way toward the clearing at it's base I tripped over something and almost fell head first into it's sizable trunk. Gasping at my near miss of a major head wound and inspecting the scratches I had acquired on my hands, I turned to scowl at the offending root that had tossed me. Of course, there was no root. I can be so clumsy sometimes. I often joke that if I go to a get together and someone gets hurt, that someone will invariably be me. I walked back to where I thought I had tripped, determined to find something other than my own clumsiness that could have caused my stumble. There was little grass here, under the tree. I swiped my foot back and forth, lightly, over the ground and it eventually bumped something in a small tuft of brown grass. I crouched down and found wood but not a root. I dug out of the dirt a small wooden horse. It looked to be quite old and hand carved. It was rearing up on it's hind quarters and was missing a front leg. It also had what may have been a cowboy riding on his back but the little man was broken off around the armpit area. It was all carved onto a flat piece that allowed you to stand it up. I sat under the tree, journal forgotten, and worked at cleaning the dirt off my little find.


	16. The Trouble with Dee

~16~ The Trouble with Dee  
...

That night at dinner we all talked about our days, sharing interesting points.

"The fucker had no clue! I'm telling you, the guy probably has never laid hands on anything older than a 2003." Charlie was going on about her visit to the garage.

"So you really only paid half price?" I asked.

"Hell yeah! If I'm going to do the oil change myself, why should I pay them for it? But, the car wash was nice. I took her into the self serve bay and gave her some personal love. Bought some stuff and parked her at El's beach and gave her a nice wax."

El was shaking her head and laughing. "You should have seen the guys checking Charlie out. She could have had any guy on that beach today. She's bending over the hood and I'm surprised her shorts didn't catch fire with the heated looks her ass was getting."

"Yeah, well, I'm saving myself for Nicky." Charlie said, defensively. We all laughed.

"So how was the beach for you, El?" Sammi asked her.

"So nice! I finished my book and even snoozed for a bit. Those Great Lakes are pretty cool. How about you, Sammi? Anything interesting in town?"

"The museum was a bust...closed. I enjoyed wandering through the antique stores and other craft shops, though. I found a treasure trove of scrap booking stuff at a little mom and pop craft outlet." She was very excited and so we were too. I tried scrap booking once. I just didn't have the energy to dedicate to it. "All in all, a great day." She finished with a smile.

"Well I had a blast out on the trails today. So quiet. Saw a couple deer too. I took lots of pictures if anyone wants to see them later. Oh! I found the little cemetery that features in the book! It's pretty run down though. I almost bashed my skull against a giant tree out there when I tripped over a little carved horse that was sticking out of the ground, too." I shared.

"Little carved horse?" El asked.

"It's just a small thing, broken in a few places. Who knows who dropped it out there but I kept it as a souvenir. I'll take you guys down to the cemetery after dinner if you want." I offered. Everyone thought that was a great idea.

"I had the best day of all of you." Cat said. "No strenuous activity for me. The warm stone treatment was amazing, as was the warm mud bath, but you have all got to go see Dieter." She had a mischievous grin on her face.

"Who's Dieter?" Charlie asked, leaning in.

"Yes, do tell." El added.

"Dieter was my masseuse and is a god. I have never felt so good after a massage! The man works magic with his hands."

"Hmm. I think I'm feeling a little tense." El said to laughter all around.

After dinner, I took the girls down to the cemetery. We wandered around a bit, checked out the graves of the boys and Leticia Gore, the orphanage caretaker, and then headed back to the hotel when it started getting dark.

We stopped in the lobby to make plans for the following day. "So, it's about a six hour drive to Forest Hills, Illinois. I've booked us rooms in a Super 8 in Dekalb, which is actually west of Forest Hills, but we won't be needing them if all goes to plan." I said filling them in on our next stop.

"Wait." Cat said. "Why won't we be needing our rooms? What's in Forest Hills?"

"Well Forest Hills, Illinois is the actual location of the Rockford Asylum." I waited for it to sink in.

"Oh Lord. Are we going to The Asylum? The one where people always die?" Sammi guessed.

"Yup! But no one has died there since Dean and Sam took care of the ghost of the evil doctor. So it should be a piece of cake." I said, grinning like a fool at them all.

"Hell yes! So when do we leave?" El asked, excited.

"Well I figured we could drive in to the hotel, settle our things and have dinner, then drive out to the Asylum for an overnight stay." I offered. "So...meet down here around ten tomorrow?"

"Sounds good. This is going to be great!" El said as she headed off toward her room.

"Think I'll have one of those mud baths before we leave." Charlie said.

"Me too. I'm going to need all the relaxation I can get before this next crazy thing on our list." Sammi said and headed off in the direction of the spa with Charlie.

"Hey! Hold up!" Cat called after them. "I want to see Dieter one last time!"

I smiled after them. This trip has been the best time I've ever had and I couldn't think of any other friends I'd rather have gone on it with. My evening plans were simple: a long hot soak in the bath, a little tv, pack what I could, and turn in early.

The next morning was leisurely. We planned on hitting a restaurant on the way for a late breakfast/early lunch, so there wasn't a rush. I was in the bathroom, finishing up when I heard a sound from out in my room. I looked up in time to see movement in the mirror. "I'll be right out." I called. I assumed one of the girls had come in to walk down to the lobby with me, probably El. I put on my glasses, grabbed my things from the counter, and did a last check of my hair in the mirror. "So, you ready for the..." There was no one there. I looked around my room and not a soul. I must have completely imagined the sound. I really should get more sleep.

As I was putting my toiletries in my bag I felt movement behind me. I turned, but there was nothing there. What was wrong with me? All this talk of ghosts and the Asylum must have my mind in over drive. I finished with my bag and zipped it up. There was a creak of the floor to my left and I turned my head in time to see the little wooden horse fall over on the night stand. Didn't want to forget my souvenir. I stepped over, grabbed it and stuffed it in my pocket. When I turned back to my bag, there was a young boy standing there. He looked to be anywhere from six to eight years old. I really am a lousy judge of age. "Are you lost? I think you have the wrong room." I said.

He shook his head no and reached for my hand. Of course I instinctively reached for his. Poor thing was probably scared and lost.

El knocked on Dee's door about ten minutes after ten. "Dee? Come on, girl! You coming?" After a minute, the door opened and Dee looked at El like it was the first time she'd ever seen her. "You okay?" Dee nodded her head and slowly walked toward the stairs leading to the lobby. El looked after her for a moment and glanced back into the room. "Geez, woman." She huffed under her breath and stepped into the room to grab Dee's bag that was left sitting on the bed.

The girls all gathered and headed out to the car. Cat opened the trunk and they all stowed their bags. As she slammed the trunk Cat called to Dee. "Your turn behind the wheel, babe." She tossed the keys to Dee which only hit her square in the chest and dropped to the ground. "Dee?"

Dee looked down at the keys and then to everyone else. "Uh, no no. I can't, umm..." Dee stooped and picked up the keys and held them out. "I can't do this." The girls all looked at each other and then back to Dee.

"Are you feeling okay, because, damn girl, I never thought I'd see the day you'd turn down driving." Charlie said with a frown on her face.

"Yeah. What's up with you today?" El asked.

"I just...I can't! Okay?!" Dee said in a huff and jammed the keys into the closest hand she came to and then went to the back door of the Impala and struggled with the handle until Sammi leaned over and popped the door open for her. Dee got in and slammed the door behind her. Everyone looked around, the concern and confusion clear on their faces.

"What the fuck just happened?" El wondered.

"Yeah." Was all Cat could answer.

"Well, whatever it was, it looks like I'm driving this leg." Sammi said holding up the keys.

El raised her eyebrows in a bit of a whatever motion and then got into the car to sit with Dee.

"I'll navigate for you." Charlie offered. "Dee said Super 8 in Dekalb, right?"

"Yup. Here's my phone. I got maps last night." Sammi said, handing her phone to Charlie.

"Maybe she's on the rag." Cat said.

"Cat!" Sammi gasped in shock.

"What? Could be..." Cat smiled and went around to climb in the back next to El.

El spent most of the ride to the restaurant just watching Dee. At the beginning, Dee had a death grip on the door and kept her eyes closed. After a while she slowly opened her eyes and loosened her hold. At one point a car zipped by in the opposite direction and Dee gasped and jerked back from the window. She never took her eyes off the window though. She gaped at the scenery passing by as if she'd never been in a car, driving down the road, before. El was positive that if they had opened the window, Dee would have hung her head out of it like a dog. What was going on with her?

"Okay guys! I found us a Bob Evans!" Sammi announced some time later.

"Where abouts are we?" Cat asked.

"Angola, Indiana."

"Thank god!" Charlie exclaimed. "I'm starving!"

"When aren't you hungry?" El teased. "How about you, Dee? Hungry?" Dee ignored her. El poked her in the ribs. "Dee! I asked if you were hungry?"

Dee jumped at the poking and turned an angry face on El and then composed herself with what looked like considerable effort. El frowned at the hot look she got. "Hungry?" She asked again.

"Umm..." Dee looked around the car and, noticing most eyes were on her, answered "Yeah. Sure." El shook her head and crawled out of the car on Cat's side. Dee hung back and followed everyone else into the restaurant. In the restaurant, Dee's head seemed to be on a swivel. She never stopped looking all around. One would think she never went out to eat.

After a while, the waitress came around to take their orders.

"I'll take the sunshine skillet and a coffee, black." El said.

"I'll have the Border Scramble with coffee. Cream and sugar, please." Charlie ordered.

The waitress made her way around everyone to Dee. Dee scratched her head and then asked "Can I have pancakes?"

"Sure thing, sweety. Short stack or the platter?"

"Lots!"

"Okay, the platter. Comes with two eggs, sausage, and bread of your choice, toast or biscuit."

"Oh, biscuits, please! Can you scramble the eggs?"

"Of course. Anything to drink with that? Coffee?"

"Milk, please."

The food came and everyone retreated into their own thoughts while they ate. Dee dug into the food as if she'd never eaten before. Once her food was gone, she spent the majority of the time gawking at everything there was to see. El kept watching Dee, off and on, throughout the meal. Something was off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what.

"So, you think Dee is acting weird?" El quietly asked the girls as they gathered around the car later.

"Not really." Cat said. "Other than her not wanting to drive. She often watches the scenery go by out the window."

"Yeah. I haven't really noticed anything weird. What do you mean?" Sammi answered.

"I don't know. I can't put it into words. She just seems off, somehow."

"I guess I haven't noticed anything, myself."Charlie said.

"Well..." El sounded unsure. "I suppose as long as she's eating and drinking and not running a temp or anything, there's not much we can do."

"Shy of salting and burning her." Charlie offered.

"Very funny." El answered, glancing past the rest, let's go.

"Hey, girls! Are we going to travel some more or stand around jawing?" Dee said as she came up to the group.

"Sure thing! You sure you don't want to drive?" Sammi asked, dangling the keys out in front of her.

"I am sure. I have enjoyed riding and looking out at the land passing by." Dee answered.

Charlie snatched the keys out of Sammi's hand. "If she won't, I will!" Sammi chuckled and headed for the car, the rest following.

They got into Dekalb around six o'clock. They checked into the hotel and then ordered pizza for dinner. Dee played with the remote and the tv, flipping channels every five seconds. "So, Dee, when do you think we should head out to the asylum?" El asked her.

"Um, I don't know. Whenever you want to." She answered.

"Well, if we don't want to deal with the local authorities, I suggest we wait til well after dark." Sammi suggested.

"Good plan as always, Sammi! So, who wants to play some more poker?" Charlie suggested. "Pocket change for betting."

Everyone was in for some poker. The pocket change was dumped in the center and divvied up amongst them all. Dee cleaned house and enjoyed it very much.

"I think you've been holding out on us." Cat whined.

"Seriously, can we say hustle?" Charlie said chuckling.

"Dee, you need to take on Dean in a game of poker when we finally meet them!" Sammi said. That got everyone going on about meeting the guys and Dee's chances at winning at a game of poker against them.

"Where did you learn to play like that?" El wondered.

"My brother was very good at poker." Dee answered.

"But... I didn't know you had a brother?"

"Oh, did I say brother? I meant cousin. My mistake." Dee quickly answered.

"Nicky, that explains it!" Charlie said with a chuckle.

"Hey guys! Gear up! Let's do this whole B & E thing already!" Sammi announced. Everyone got up and changed into more suitable clothing: Sweatshirts or tees, jeans, and sneakers. "Everyone make sure you have your flashlight, too."


	17. Things Get Crazy at the Asylum

~17~ Things Get Crazy at the Asylum  
...

They climbed into the car and Charlie drove them based on the directions Sammi had on her phone. There was a small side road that ran to the back of the complex but it was blocked by a chained fence. "No worries. I got this." Charlie said. She shut off the car and went back around to the trunk. Everyone could hear her digging around. She then knocked on Dee's window, startling everyone. "Hop out and hold my light, would ya?"

Dee got out and followed Charlie over to the gate. Charlie shown her light down on the chain and then handed it to Dee. "Hold it right there." She then held up a large set of bolt cutters and proceeded to chop right through the chain. "Awesome! Thanks, Dee!"

"This is trespassing." Dee said quietly, looking around.

"Of course it is, silly! Come on! Get back in the car, let's go!" Charlie climbed into the car and handed the bolt cutters across the seat to Sammi. Dee climbed back into the back and Charlie pulled the car through the gate, stopping long enough to pull the gate back shut behind them. She draped the loose ends of the chain through the fence, trying to make it look unharmed. She then pulled the car back into a service bay on the side of the building, effectively hiding it from view.

"Should I be impressed or worried that you are doing this whole breaking and entering thing so well?" El asked sarcastically. Everyone gave a nervous chuckle.

"We shouldn't be here." Dee said.

"Oh come on! You getting scared? I thought you would be the bravest one of the group. Well, maybe next to Charlie..." Cat mused.

"Anyway. There shouldn't be any more ghosts, right? Dean and Sam took care of the evil doctor. You said so yourself." El said, reassuringly.

"Ghosts?" Dee asked, breathlessly.

"Well..." Sammi paused. "There might actually be a few ghosts remaining. The patients. The book didn't say whether the guys cleared out every ghost in the place. Just the evil doctor causing all the problems."

"See? No trouble. The other ghosts just wanted the doctor gone. They shouldn't bother us." Charlie said. "Come on. Time's a wasting." Charlie grabbed the bolt cutters and her flashlight and climbed out of the car.

Everyone followed behind. Charlie stopped at the side door, next to the loading dock. It was locked and the bolt cutters weren't going to be of use here.

"Going to pick the lock?" Cat asked excitedly.

"Well, I picked the lock to Sam's old apartment, right? I'll give it a shot." Charlie pulled out a little packet and took out little tools and got to work.

"Where did you get the lock picking stuff?" El asked. She almost sounded jealous. Charlie answered a muffled response. She was holding her flashlight in her mouth. El took the flashlight and held it for her. "Where?"

"Same place I got the bolt cutters."

"And that is...?"

"The trunk! It's not just for weapons and bodies anymore!" She sounded like a used car salesman.

"Huh. I should poke around in there some more..." El mused. There was a click and Charlie opened the door. "You have got to teach me how to do that!"

"Any time." Charlie smiled, taking her flashlight back.

The girls slowly made their way into the Asylum. There was graffiti everywhere. Unidentifiable litter was scattered across the floors and accumulated in the corners. Here and there, they passed a filing cabinet or an over turned desk. Without realizing it, they all walked with a hand on someone else.

"Did you guys hear that?" Dee asked after a bit.

"Seriously not funny, Dee." Cat whispered.

"I'm not trying to be funny and why are you whispering?"

"I don't know."

They continued on until they came to a main lobby area. "Guys! This is the main entry hall from the books." Sammi said. Sammi turned in a slow circle and then pointed at some doors. "That must be the South Wing." Charlie headed over to them with her bolt cutters.

"Woah! Are you guys insane?" Cat said. Everyone just stopped and looked at her. "What?"

"We are breaking into an asylum and she asks if we're insane." El said with an eye roll.

"You know what I mean! People have died in there!"

"Cat, it's cool. I did the research. There hasn't been in incident in there for about six years. That lines right up with when Dean and Sam were here. I think we're safe." Sammi assured her.

Cat bit her lip a moment and then asked. "How do you know all this stuff?"

Sammi grinned. "It's kind of my job."

"Well, you had a crappy guidance counselor." Everyone laughed and the tension broke. Charlie cut through the chains on the doors and they all crept through. They had gone maybe ten feet when the door slammed shut behind them. Everyone jumped, Cat squealed maybe just a little, and they all turned back to the doors.

"Dee, would you knock it off? Seriously, I don't think this place needs any help to be spooky." Sammi said, breathlessly, shining her flashlight into Dee's face.

"Me? I didn't do it!"

"You're the one at the back...who else could it have been?"

"Maybe one of the ghosts you guys seem so eager to see?"

"Alright. Everyone relax. The door shut. Big deal. Could have been a draft. We're fine, let's calm down." El said.

"El's right. If we jump at every little sound, we'll never make it through the night. It's an old building. There are bound to be sounds; rodents in the walls, drafts, the building settling. Come on." Charlie agreed.

"Rodents in the walls..well, thank you for that, Charlie!" Cat let out with an exasperated sigh. Charlie gave her a sheepish grin and shrugged her shoulders.

"Well, it wasn't me." Dee quietly said.

"That's cool, Dee." El said. "Let's keep going."

The girls started forward again, flashlight beams shining all over the place. "So. What do we do if we actually do come across a ghost?" Cat quietly asked.

"Umm...no sudden movements? Don't make eye contact?" Charlie offered.

"Isn't that what you're supposed to for bears?" El asked.

"Well, I don't know!"

"We all read the books right?" Sammi said. Everyone acknowledged that. "So, we just need some iron or salt." They looked down at themselves and around at each other.

"Well this is just great!" Cat complained.

"I'm a little disappointed in ourselves, to be honest." El said. They all held out their plastic flashlights.

"Wait! The bolt cutters!" Charlie held them up. "I bet these are iron. Anyone have a ghost we can test them out on?"

"Very funny." Cat groused. "Looks like Charlie's taking point."

"Fine, ya sissies." She said with a grin.

They came to a large room off to the right and went in. There were some over turned tables and a desk shoved haphazardly into the corner. The room was a cluttered, littered mess. The girls started to poke around. "Shh! Did you guys hear that?" Dee whispered after a moment.

"Hear what?" Sammi asked.

"Sounded maybe like singing?"

"You're freaking yourself out, Dee. There's nothing here."El said.

"I'm telling you, I heard singing."

"What were the words? We can sing along." Charlie offered.

Dee heaved a sigh. "Something about Peter the pumpkin eater? I think?"

"Peter, Peter, the pumpkin eater. Had a wife and couldn't keep her. Put her in a pumpkin shell and there he kept her very well." Sammi quoted.

"Yes! That's it! You guys didn't hear it?" Dee exclaimed.

"Yeah...no. I have never heard that before. What is it?"Charlie asked.

"Sounds fucking creepy to me." Cat said.

"It's just a little nursery rhyme." El said.

"A nursery rhyme about holding your wife hostage?" Cat asked.

"Hey guys, check it out!" Sammi said. She had continued wandering the room while they talked. She held up and old name placard from the desk. It read Sanford Ellicott.

"Whoa, now that's creepy. He's the big bad, right?" El said.

"Yup. Thought by making the patients really angry that they would overcome their anger, or some weird shit." Cat said.

"Hey Dee, do you remember what ro-" El started to ask as she turned toward Dee. "Um, guys? Where's Dee?" Everyone turned to where Dee had been to find empty space.

"What the fuck?" Charlie whispered.

"Dee! Still not funny!" Cat yelled, causing everyone else to jump.

In the sudden silence that followed Cat's outburst, the girls just stood there listening. Nothing. El popped her head out into the hallway, splashing the beam of her flashlight up and down the hall. "No sign of her. What the hell?"

"Well now what do we do?" Sammi asked.

"Well, we obviously can't leave this shit hole without her." Charlie offered.

"Right. We just keep on as we were, keeping an eye out for her as we go. She went off on her own, so I don't think she'd stray far." El said. The others nodded their heads.

"Right. It's not like she was dragged out of the room against her will. We would have heard...right?" Cat was shining her light on the floor, possibly looking for scuff marks from Dee being dragged from the room.

"Of course. Let's keep moving. We'll check side rooms as we go." El said with calm assurance.

They made their way back out into the hall and traveled about three quarters of it's length, looking into rooms along the way. They came to a stairwell and were trying to determine whether to keep on in the hall, go upstairs, or down when they heard laughter. "Well shit." Charlie whispered. "That ain't creepy at all." They all unconsciously crowded a little bit closer together.

"Where'd that come from?" El asked. The faint laughter came again.

"Sounds like downstairs." Sammi offered.

"Of course. Downstairs. Deeper and darker. Why would it be anything else?" Cat murmured to herself. They all looked at each other, silently agreeing that downstairs was where they needed to go. They headed slowly down the stairs keeping their ears open for any sound from Dee.

There was a landing, then another set of stairs to a second landing, and a doorway with it's door hanging by one set of hinges. As they went, Charlie took the lead, holding the bolt cutters out in front of her like a shield. As they alighted on the second landing with the doorway, something smashed into the hanging door from the hall. It appeared to be an empty picture frame. The girls all screamed and clutched at each other. As they regained their breath, Cat let it go. "What the fuck? Seriously! I can't do this shit! Dee, this is not even remotely fun! Stop it, damn it!"

"Hey, hey. Calm down." Sammi said, wrapping an arm around her.

"Calm down? How the fuck am I supposed to calm down with Dee out there playing freaking Gozer?!" Charlie blurted out a bit of laughter. "What? What is so amusing to you?" Cat demanded.

"Sorry, girl. Really, I am! But the Ghostbusters reference, in this case, was just golden." Charlie said with a smile.

Cat paused and just looked at her for a moment and then laughed herself. "Well damn, if I'm not awesome."

While Charlie and Sammi were dealing with Cat, El had stuck her head out into the lower hallway. There was nothing to be seen. "Guys, she's gone already."

"Damn it. As if this whole trip isn't fucking spooky enough, Dee has to pull this shit. We will make her pay for it with noogies and wet willies, right guys?" Sammi said.

"For a start..." Cat answered.

"Alright. Let's keep going." El whispered. "We'll try to be super quiet and then she won't hear us coming." They crept out into the hallway. It wasn't til they were moving again that El realized being quiet would make no difference. Their flashlight beams would give them away long before they were heard making any noise.

"Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit..." Cat started whispering.

"What is it?" El asked, turning to Cat. Cat just rooted herself to the spot and pointed out in front of them. Just down the hall, about six feet away, was a door that said 'CAUTION BIOLOGICAL HAZARD' on it. Cat couldn't take her eyes off it. "Is that...?" El whispered.

"Yeah. The door that leads to the evil doctor's secret lab." Sammi answered.

"Fuck yea." Charlie said excitedly and then turned to Cat. "Sorry. It'll be okay. I got this." She waved the bolt cutters in the air as proof of her promise. "You know we gotta check it out, though, right?"

Cat nodded her head. "Let's do this, bitches." She took a deep breath and moved up right behind Charlie. The four of them made their way into the small room and immediately zeroed in on the hole in the wall that was made when Sam shot Dean with the rock salt shot gun. They stepped through the hole and stood in hushed awe at being right where the big fight had gone down.

There were tables and cabinets around the room, some with strange and nasty, looking tools on them. Along the walls were various cabinets with who knew what in them. There were a few gurneys and what looked like shower curtains hanging at odd intervals around the room.

"Oh, this guy was just messed up!" Charlie said.

"Ya think?" El answered. They slowly panned the room with their lights, coming to a stop on a small white metal cabinet to the side with it's doors hanging open. The inside looked like it had suffered a small fire with it's charred interior. "Rest in torment, Doc."

There was a sound from beyond one of the curtains to their right and they all swung their lights around. "Oh god." Sammi whispered to herself.

"Enough, Dee! It isn't funny anymore." El said. The curtain suddenly zipped along it's track revealing an empty cubby hole. The four girls all gasped and jumped back. "What the actual fuck?"

"Holy shit. You guys don't think...you don't...shit." Cat whispered.

"Cool! An actual ghost! We come in peace!" Charlie said the last bit loud and slow. As if, if she spoke that way, the ghost would understand her better.

Sammi rolled her eyes. "Really, Charlie?"

There was a scuffing sound behind them, now, and they all whipped around in time to see movement in the room they had come from. Charlie was off and running, with the other three struggling to keep up. More laughter could be heard in the hallway. Charlie peeked her head out, without her flashlight. She brought her head back in and looked like she had seen a ghost. "You guys have got to see what I just saw."

So one by one, they all stuck their heads out and looked down the hall. At the other end stood Dee with her flashlight trained on an empty wheelchair. The wheelchair rolled back and forth by itself. Dee wasn't touching it. She looked to be having a conversation with the empty chair. The girls pulled their heads back.

"I say again." El started.

"What the actual fuck?" Charlie finished for her.

"Yeah. What did we just see?"

"Looked like Dee was talking to a chair. A chair that was rolling back and forth without any help." Cat answered.

Sammi had poked her head out again and then pulled it back quickly. "Guys! She's coming this way!"

"With the wheelchair?" Cat asked, confused.

"No. The chair stopped moving and Dee looked up as if, whomever had been in the chair, stood up."

"I've got an idea." Charlie said. She peeked around the corner. As she did so, she held the bolt cutters by their rubber-gripped handles. As Dee came to the doorway, Charlie stepped quickly out in front of her, holding out the bolt cutters. "Dee! There you are! Can you hold these for a minute?" Charlie thrust the bolt cutters practically through Dee's chest, forcing her to grab them, to move them away. When Dee grabbed the iron of the bolt cutters, a dark cloud-like shape flew up and away from her and she dropped to the floor.

"Holy shit! Was that a ...a...ghost?" Cat asked, eyes wide. The four all moved around Dee.

"I think so." El said.

"Oo! Like in After School Special! The one with the ghost possessing people at the school!" Cat said, catching onto what had happened.

"Come on guys. Field trip's over. Let's get her out to the car and away from here." El said, crouching down and trying to rouse Dee.

"Let's just each grab a bit and get out of here." Charlie said. She tucked the bolt cutters though a belt loop on her jeans, leaned down and grabbed Dee's arm and shoulder. El took the opposite arm and Cat and Sammi each took a leg. "Damn, this girl's heavier than she looks!"

"Let's just go." Sammi said and they all started for the stairs. It was slow, but steady, progress and they eventually made it to the car. They maneuvered her into the front passenger seat and Charlie took the wheel again, taking them all back to the hotel in Dekalb.


	18. Mystery Solved

~18~ Mystery Solved  
...

"...at the Asylum..."

"...be awake by now?"

"Ghost possession, but..."

"...maybe? Don't know..."

I was drifting in and out of consciousness, catching snippets of hushed conversation around me. My head was spinning and I felt trapped in a dream I couldn't wake from, no matter how I struggled to do so. It eventually grew quiet around me and I had settled into it when out of the silence came a sudden sneeze. It was, apparently, what I needed to come around. The suddenness of it caused me to gasp and my head to fly up off the pillow. I grabbed my head and, just as quickly, dropped back to the pillow. My head felt like I had a horde of blacksmiths in it trying to hammer their way out.

"Dee! Dee, you're awake! Thank God!" Cat said. I looked around me. I was laying on a bed and the girls were gathered around, looking worried. Cat was at my side and rested her hand on my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"My head hurts like a mother!"

Sammi, to my left, held out a cup. "I have some water if you're thirsty." I made a face and shook my head no. She frowned at me, but put the cup on the night stand.

"What's going on? Why are you all crowded around me? What's up?" I asked.

"What do you remember?" El asked me. I frowned at her and realized that she was serious. I looked around the room more and it hit me that I didn't even recognize the room. Where the hell were we? I started to go through my head. What did I remember?

"Um...I was in my room packing to leave..." I answered hesitantly.

"Your room in Vermillion?" Sammi said.

"Yeah and...this isn't that room. Where are we?"

"You don't remember anything else? The Asylum?" El questioned.

"Uhh..." I looked around at them all. Cat and Sammi sitting on the edges of the bed, being all motherly. El stood near the bed, down near my left foot, arms crossed across her chest. Charlie paced. She had been pacing across the foot of the bed since I came to and hadn't stopped. "There was a dirty, blond haired girl in a hospital gown, now that you mention it." Charlie stopped. They all looked around at each other. "Guys! Please! What the hell is going on?"

They all started talking over top of each other. Cat finally won out and told me of their Asylum experience; Charlie's amazing B & E abilities; finding the scenes of things from the book; my apparent possession by a ghost and subsequent scaring the shit out of the girls; and Charlie's quick thinking with the bolt cutters.

"You don't remember any of that?" Charlie asked. I shook my head no and she looked bummed. "Damn. I was pretty awesome, too." That made me smile and her in return.

"Like I said, I remember a dirty looking girl in a hospital gown. You think she's the one that possessed me?"

"Could be, I suppose." Sammi said.

"Or the one you were talking to." El said. She looked pensive. Something was bothering her, I could tell. I gave her a questioning look, but she just shut down. She'll share when she's ready, I suppose.

"So. I missed the Asylum, then. That sucks..." I had really been looking forward to it.

"Seriously? Thanks to you, I'll never forget it. Feel free to ask me about it any time." Cat said in a huff. "I'll tell you all about it!" A silence fell over the group as we all ruminated about the happenings of the evening's activities.

"Anyone else hungry?" Charlie blurted out.

"Me! I could SO eat!" I said.

"Cool. I'm going to go get some take out or something. Anyone wanna join me?"

"I'll go with ya, Charlie." El offered and they were out the door.

I struggled to get up and eventually made it into an upright position. Sammi stood, allowing me to sit at the edge of the bed. "You really should drink something." She said, worriedly.

"Alright, alright. Can you guys get-"

"Already done." Cat said appearing in front of me with a couple ibuprofen's in her hand. I smiled my thanks, drank the water and popped some pain meds like a good girl.

"You guys look tired. What time is it anyway?" I turned to the night stand but there was no clock there.

Sammi looked at her watch, "About three a.m. and the clock in this room doesn't work."

"Sheesh. You guys go on and go to bed." I felt horrible.

"Are you kidding? Still a little too jacked up for sleep at the moment." Cat said and plunked down on the edge of the bed opposite me.

"I don't think Charlie's going to find anyplace open this late at night. Heck, the Burger King back home is only open til two in the morning." I said.

Sammi sat her self down next to Cat, pulling her legs up under her. "Maybe they'll find one of those late night Taco Bells."

I shrugged my shoulders. "Listen, guys, I'm really sorry about all the grief I caused you tonight."

"Hell, you didn't know what you were doing." Cat offered.

Sammi snorted. "That doesn't mean you weren't still willing to rip her head off at the time."

"Hey, yeah! We still owe her some noogies and wet willies!" Cat stood up grinning and I leaned back on my bed. "Just kidding, we owe whatever ghost hijacked your body a couple of good ones, though." She paused, studying me. "You really don't remember anything?"

So I sat and tried as best I could. I tried to think of the girl I saw and the Asylum. "I seem to remember feelings, more than actual memories. If that makes any sense. Like, I remember fear. Intense fear. Then I can recall happiness, but...more than that. Joy? I guess? Excitement. I get flashes of images too, but nothing more and nothing I can really make out."

"Well. We wanted excitement, we certainly got it! I wonder if you touched something while we were at the Asylum." Sammi thought.

"How do you mean?"

"Well, I'm thinking you had to have touched something that was meaningful to the ghost, perhaps, that made it jump into you? Hell, I'm only guessing. I don't know how this shit works!"

"In the After-school Special book, those that got jumped didn't touch the hair. They were just on the same bus that the hair was on. Once the ghost left their bodies, it got pulled back to the hair." Cat said. "So, based on that, she didn't need to touch anything. She was just in the wrong spot at the wrong time."

"Lucky me." I said with a sigh. All my life, growing up, if I was ever at a party, a sleep over, or any gathering, really, I was the one that got hurt. I was the one that spilled something down the front of themselves. I was the one that accidentally bumped the vase in the hall, shattering it. I had the worst luck. I guess it made sense that if a ghost was going to possess anyone, it would have been me.

We sat there for a bit, Sammi and Cat recounting, with humor, their experiences at the Asylum, again, for me. In hindsight, it was a bit more funny than it had seemed the first time. As we were laughing, Charlie and El came in carrying a couple bags.

"Good to see that you're feeling better." El said with a smile.

"I'll feel even more better with some grub. What were you two able to get at three in the morning, I'm curious to know?" I smiled back and tension visibly slid off her face.

"We got the fact that Dekalb has no idea how to have fun!" Charlie said dropping her bags on the bed next to me and following them herself. "We got gas station fare. Sorry guys. Everything else was closed."

"Hey, anything is good at this hour." Cat said, grabbing a bag and taking a look at it's contents. They proceeded to dump the bags out onto my bed. They had chips of various kinds, a handful of Slim Jims, packages of cookies and crackers, a couple single serve packs of Pop Tarts, a bag of Twizzlers, and a Twinkee.

Charlie leaned over and grabbed the Twinkee. "Twinkee's mine." I reached out and took one of the pop tart packs. El went over to the little side table and set out a bottle of pop and a six pack of beer.

"We are all going to have massive belly aches after this meal." Sammi grimaced. We noticed, though, that it didn't slow her down from grabbing a can of Pringles with a grin on her face.

"So, I swung by the motel office on the way out and they said we're ok to check out later than the usual eleven. They don't need the room right away. So I suggest we stuff our faces and then sleep til we can't sleep anymore. Then we'll head out. We can always stop along the way and stay another night at some other Super 8 if we need to." El said as she handed drinks around.

"Sounds like a good idea." I said with a smile.

While we ate (munched?) Sammi, Cat, and I filled El and Charlie in on our discussion about the evening's events while they were out hunting for food. El looked thoughtful for a moment. "You don't remember leaving Vermillion though? The car ride? Bob Evans for brunch? Any of that either?"

I furrowed my brow. I hadn't even thought that far back. I had tried focusing in on our time at the Asylum. "I..." I stared holes into the bedspread trying to remember the things she mentioned, but I couldn't. "I remember being in the bathroom at the hotel." I continued to stare at the bed in front of me when it came to me. My eyes jerked up to El's face. "There was a sound out in my room. I thought it had been one of you guys come to walk down to the lobby with me."

"But how would we have gotten into your room?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah, well, obviously that never occurred to me."

"Pft, Charlie. You could've just picked her lock!" Cat chimed in making everyone chuckle.

"Anything else?" El pressed. "Because, woman, you have been acting off ever since I picked you up at your room."

"Yeah. I went out into the room and there was nobody there. I thought I was losing my marbles." I continued.

"Already done that..." Cat said under her breath with a grin.

"Anyway." I said, glaring at Cat. "There was a creak in the floor behind me and when I turned, there was nothing there. I grabbed some last stuff, packed it up and when I turned, there was a little boy there! That's it!"

"I knew it! She didn't get jumped at the Asylum! She got jumped back at The Pineview Hotel!" El exclaimed, finally getting vindication for her gut feelings all this time.

"Maybe he noticed me while I was out walking. I went through an old garden that wasn't kept up anymore." I suggested.

"Or even at the cemetery." Sammi said. Everyone nodded their heads. "Mystery solved! Sam and Dean would be so proud!"

I smiled at that but then my smile fell, as did everyone else's. Thinking of Dean and Sam only made us realize that our trip would soon be over. We've had such a great time, though, and being able to meet the boys would, really, be the icing on the cake. Charlie yawned. "Think it's time we turned in." I said. Sammi glanced down at her watch and I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Almost five." she said.

We all cleaned up our munchie madness mess and turned in. We slept most the day away and finally got ourselves going around four in the afternoon. We decided to eat at a restaurant in town and then head out. We would drive til it started getting dark or we got to a hotel that looked decent.

We had packed up the car and we were making last minute trips to the bathrooms and checking for anything left behind. While I was in the bathroom, I heard a noise that sounded like it came from the shower. I flushed and peeked behind the curtain, but there was nothing there. How long was I going to be on edge after this? I went to the sink and washed my hands. When I looked up to turn the water off, there was the little boy in the mirror. "I'm not done having fun." He said. I screamed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Oh no! The ghost boy is back! Will Dee be okay? Will the Flannel Five be able to get rid of this ghost once and for all? Will Dean kill them when they finally meet up, removing the need to worry about the ghost all together? Stay tuned! FYI: There really was a Rockford Asylum, but it wasn't actually featured in the show...It was filmed at the Riverview Hospital in Vancouver, which has been featured in many SPN episodes as well as many other films and tv shows. It once contained a psychiatric ward, though, adding some fun to the location.


	19. Chucky Wants to Play

~19~ Chucky Wants to Play  
...

"Dee? Dee! You okay?" Charlie asked knocking on the door.

Dee looked around the bathroom, eyes finally locking on the corner above the shower where wall met ceiling, "Yeah." she answered. "Spider!" Dee smiled at the spider in the corner and went out. Charlie patted her on the back.

"You had me worried there for a minute." she said with a nervous smile.

"Nah. I'm fine. Let's go." Dee said, heading out for the car.

At the restaurant, Dee glanced over the menu but didn't seem ready to order when the waitress came by. "No, no. You guys go first and I'll know what I want by then." So they ordered and Dee eventually ordered the same as El.

"I thought you weren't an onion fan. That's going to have onions on it." El questioned.

"Yeah, but it sounded so good. I'll be ok." Dee answered.

The meals came and they all ate. Dee ate hers without hesitation. El gave her a few strange looks but never said anything. When the check came, everyone looked to Dee. She had paid for every meal out on the whole trip and now just sat there.

"Dee?" Sammi said. Dee raised her eyebrows at her. "You good for the cash or do we need to all chip in on this one? I know the trip is winding down..."

"Oh, uh, yeah." Dee fumbled with her purse and started digging in it, which was an accomplishment considering how small it was. She finally pulled out a wad of bills and, as she fumbled with them, scattered them across the table. "Gosh darn it!"

"Here, let me help a sister out." Charlie said looking pointedly at El who returned the worried look. Charlie picked out the cash needed to pay the bill, folded the rest up neatly, and handed it back to Dee.

"Thanks." Dee mumbled.

"You okay?" El asked her.

"She's probably still a little shaky from yesterday." Cat offered.

"Yeah. That's all. I'll be fine, guys." Dee said with a large smile plastered on her face that didn't quite make it to her eyes.

The waitress came by took their payment and they left. Outside, El pulled out the keys and asked Dee if she would like to drive which Dee declined due to being shaky. They drove for about four hours and pulled into a Super 8 in Fort Dodge around nine that evening.

"I feel silly stopping for the night. I'm not even tired." Cat said.

"Yeah, but we don't want to show up at Bobby's at midnight either." Sammi said.

"I suppose that's a good point. Off to bed then, I guess." They got their rooms and turned in for the night. El and Charlie chose to room with Dee, each wanting to keep an eye on her.

Charlie took the couch and fell right to sleep. El chose to read for a bit and Dee flipped channels on the tv with the volume turned low. El was determined to stay awake until Dee fell asleep and, even though her head bobbed a few times, she caught Dee sleeping around one in the morning. El turned the tv off and went to sleep herself.

The next day they got going around nine. Everyone's nerves were tight. They all knew this was it. The end of their trip but also meeting the boys. That was making more than one of them nervous.

"You don't think they'll shoot us, do you?" Cat asked them as they were heading down the road.

"Nah. Missouri said she told them they weren't allowed to kill us." Sammi said with a smile.

"Well, that's reassuring!"

"What do you think they'll be like?" Charlie asked.

It was quiet as they all pondered the boys from what they had read in the books. "I hope they're fun!" Dee answered.

"Oh, I'm sure they can be no end of fun...if you're on their good side." Sammi said.

"Of which, we more than likely are not." El said with a grin. "I think Sammy will have the cool head and will keep Dean from wanting to do something rash."

"Sounds about right. Keep Dean from, uh, locking us into one of Bobby's clunkers and leaving us to rot." Cat suggested.

"Or keep him from turning us into the local cops as car thieves." Sammi said, her fear of getting busted by the cops shining through.

"Or shooting one of us as an example to the rest." Charlie offered.

"Okay, these guys don't sound so fun anymore." Dee said.

"Dean loves his Baby, what can we say? Nicky sure did find the perfect car for this trip, though, didn't he?" El said.

"And I intend on thanking him properly." Charlie said with a purr to her voice. Everyone chuckled.

"What about Bobby? How do you think he'll react?" Sammi asked.

"Well he would certainly jump in front of Dean and keep the idjit from doing something stupid." Cat said.

"He-he, idjit." Charlie echoed, laughing.

The banter kept up for most of the trip. The girls would bring up different scenes from the books, showcasing the brother's interaction with each other to many laughs and groans. Before they knew it, they were coming into Sioux Falls. El pulled into a gas station to top off the tank and ask directions out to Singer's Salvage. They watched as the gas station attendant tried to talk El into a more reputable establishment just down the road with grins on their faces. Finally, having gotten the directions she sought, El got back behind the wheel. "About ten minutes out of town. You guys ready?"

"As ever." Sammi said.

"Let's do this, bitch." Charlie said.

"Alright, Jerk, let's go." El answered, popping the car into gear and pulling out of the station.

The place certainly looked like a bit of a dump. High fencing surrounded the whole place, with enough junk piled on the inside, that one couldn't really see in all that well. When they came to the entrance and pulled through, they were holding their collective breath. The sign above the entrance had seen better days as had the house just inside the gate. "Dang Bobby, you need a woman." Charlie said. The girls chuckled at the truth of the statement and it eased the tension in the car.

El pulled up into a two-sided car port near the house and shut off the engine. She turned and looked at the girls. "I'm as nervous as a fox with the baying of hounds in the distance."

"Quite the picture you paint there and, yeah, me too." Sammi said.

"Umm, guys?" Cat said, eyes wide. She was looking behind El, out the driver's window.

El turned to see the barrel of a rifle in her face. She slowly raised her hands, as did everyone else in the car.

"Just hand me the keys, missy." El slowly pulled the keys out of the ignition and handed them out the window. A grizzled, grease stained hand came into view and snatched them from her hand. "Now. All of you ladies out of the car, nice and slow." He backed away to allow El room to open her door and kept them all covered with his rifle.

They all slowly opened doors and stepped out of the car. Dee and Sammi couldn't help but look all around like typical tourists, taking in everything. The sheet metal barns and sheds, the piles of junked cars and parts scattered around, and the dirt track that led off into a maze of junked cars. Cat, Charlie and El kept their eyes on the man with the gun. He was about six feet tall, give or take. He wore a blue plaid shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a grubby tan vest-style jacket over top. He had some sort of trucker's hat on with brown hair spitting out the back beneath it's edge. He had a rough beard and mustache and his eyes were like flint. He meant business.

"We aren't dangerous, Mr. Singer. Honest." Cat said with a noticeable waver to her voice. Her words brought Dee and Sammi's attention back to Bobby.

"That'll be for me to decide. How'd you get this here car?" Bobby asked. All eyes turned to Dee. Dee just looked like a deer caught in the headlights. She was speechless.

"Um, it was given to us for our road trip, but we didn't know it was stolen. Swear to God." El said.

"And, damn it, I've taken good care of her, thank you very much!" Charlie said indignantly. "Fixed that busted hose at the side of the road, got the replacement part and fixed her up better than new, washed her, waxed her. Damn it..."

"Alright, alright!" Bobby said waving the gun in Charlie's direction. She shut up. "How's about we take this inside until the boys get back?" Bobby motioned with the gun towards the house. They all turned and slowly made their way to the house and the door closest to them.

"We're not going to try anything, we swear. We are more than ready to meet the boys and return their car." El said. "Can we put the gun down?"

We got to the door and Bobby leaned the rifle against the door jam and pulled a gun out of the back of his pants. "I'll decide when the guns are put away. Now inside."

Sammi opened the door and the girls filed into Bobby's kitchen. They couldn't help but gawk at everything they saw, turning in circles to take it all in. The cabinets in the kitchen, the double doors leading to the library and the desk overflowing with books and papers. Everything just as the books described it. "Wow." whispered Cat. She grinned at Sammi, who returned it equally.

"Enough lolly gaggin'! Through the door to your left there." Bobby said, poking Dee in the back with his pistol.

Charlie opened the indicated door and it led to stairs going down. "The basement?" she asked.

"You got a problem?" Bobby asked.

Charlie just gave a dry swallow and started down the creaky steps. The girls followed behind with Bobby bringing up the rear with his gun poking into Dee's back. When they got to the bottom and fanned out a bit, allowing everyone room, Cat couldn't help her excitement. "Guys! The bunker!" They all turned to look at the large metal doorway at the far end of the room.

"How do you..? Never mind, you wanna see the bunker? Be my guest." Bobby said waving his pistol in the bunker's direction. The girls looked at each other, hesitating. "Well? Go on!"

They walked down to the heavy metal doorway. Sammi and Cat, at the front stopped and poked their heads in. "Look at the sigils on the walls." Sammi whispered to Cat. "And the devil's trap on the floor." Cat whispered back.

"Why don't you all take a closer look. Go on, get in there." Bobby told them.

"I guess we sort of deserve this." El said under her breath to Dee who just stood there looking up at the walls of the bunker and it's door. Sammi and Cat stepped in and Charlie and El followed.

"Well, go on." Bobby said poking Dee again in the back.

Suddenly the door to the bunker slammed shut and Dee spun around and yelled. "Stop that! Stop poking me!"

Bobby looked at the door to the bunker, which had closed by itself, and then back to Dee. He put his hands up and raised the gun away from her. He took a few steps back from her. "Hey, hey. Alright. Calm down, now." Dee turned and looked through the little window in the door at the girls who had all tried to crowd around it on the other side.

"Dee? Let us out, Dee." Charlie said.

Her face was replaced with El's. "Whoever you are in there, let her go."

Dee's face hardened and the little door slammed shut over the window, closing the girls in. When she turned back to Bobby she found him finishing a salt line about three feet away, effectively blocking her into the space between the line and the bunker at her back. "Let's just get comfy, whoever you are." Bobby kept his gun on her and backed up a bit. "So, what's your name?"

Dee looked at him for a moment. She then started studying the basement. "Charles." She eventually answered.

"Okay, Chuck. I'm Bobby."

"Charles! Everyone always calls me Chuck or Chucky! It's Charles!" Dee yelled at him.

"Okay, ok. Calm down. Charles it is. What do you want Charles?" Bobby said in a soothing tone.

"I just want to have some fun. No one ever let's us have any fun!"

Just then there was a whoop of excitement from upstairs. "Bobby! You're the man! You got Baby back! ... Bobby?"

"Down here!" Bobby called toward the stairs behind him. Two sets of feet came barreling down the stairs and came up short when they saw Bobby holding his gun on a girl of about thirty or so.

"Bobby?" The one with long hair asked. He was very tall and lanky. Long brown hair to around his shoulders and ridiculous side burns. Dee laughed. They both turned their eyes to her. "Who's this?" he asked.

"This, boys, is Charles." He said pointedly. They looked at Dee, the salt line, and then back to Bobby. The short haired one ran back up the stairs, leaving the other two.

"Charles?" The long haired one repeated.

"Echo, echo." Dee teased.

"Sam, it seems that one of the ladies who had your car, has picked up a plus one." Bobby answered.

"One of?" Sam probed.

"There's four more in the bunker. I think they're harmless. This one though..." His voice trailed off.

The short haired one returned carrying a sawed off shotgun in his hands. He took his place next to Bobby and held his gun on Dee. He had a hard face with hooded eyes. A touch of stubble and a look of dark intent in his eyes. The tendon in his jaw twitched. "I'll just shoot her." he said without a hint of emotion.

"Dean, you just can't go shooting her." Bobby said.

"Yeah, Dean. This close, you're bound to do damage, even with rock salt."

"Well what the hell, then?"

"They must have something with them that's tying the spirit to them." Bobby said.

"Okay then." Dean said. "Sammy, go out, empty Baby out and burn everything that isn't ours." He said and tossed a lighter to the taller one.

"Dean..." Sam said hesitant.

"Do it! They stole my freaking car, man! And unless this chick, here, wants to ride around with Chucky riding shotgun for the rest of her days, they are going to have to let it go." Dean spat at Sam. Sam sighed and headed up the stairs.

"It's Charles!" Dee yelled again and a couple boxes of shotgun shells flew off a work counter and beaned Dean in the side of this head.

"Hey! Whoa! Chill, there, sparky!" Dean yelled lifting his gun up toward Dee's face.

"I just want to have some fun! Why won't grown ups ever let us have any fun?!"

"Hey, that's cool! You know, I never had much fun growing up either." Dean said, trying to soothe Charles. "My dad always went away, leaving me to look after my kid brother. No fun. Cooking for him. Cleaning up after him. Stay in the room and don't go out. It sucked. I know how it feels."

A smokey acrid smell started drifting in from outside as Sam was salting and burning all the girl's possessions. "Where was your mom?" Dee asked.

"Dead." Dean said it quick and flat. Sam came back in and Dean shook his head no. "Where are you from, Charles?"

"The orphanage. I've been trapped there forever! I'm finally free and I just want to see the world and have fun."

Dean turned to Sam and Bobby. "The orphanage?" Bobby just gave them a blank stare.

Sam snapped his fingers. "The girls were hitting spots from our past, right?"

"Wait, what?" Bobby asked.

"Never mind. You really don't wanna know." Dean said.

"Dean, the book convention? Leticia Gore? The scalping boys?"

"Oh, yeah yeah. Damn, you don't think...?"

"No, but he's probably from there."

"Well you burned everything in the car right?" Sam nods his head. "Then one of the girls has got to have something on them."

Dean turns to Dee again. "Listen Charlie. Mind if we have a chat with the girls in the bunker behind you?"

"No! My turn!"

Sam steps forward. "Your turn? You had your turn. What about the girl whose body you stole? What about her? What about her life? Her turn?"

"No! You grown ups are all the same! Never want us to have any fun!" Dee wings her hand to the side and Sam goes flying, knocking over a tall tool cabinet as he hits.

"That's it." Dean says and shoots Dee with his shotgun. She flies back and bounces off the door to the bunker and drops to the floor. A black shadow briefly fades up through the air. Dean quickly runs over and flips Dee onto her back, checks for her pulse, and then starts going through her pockets.

"Dean?" Sam sputters as he raises himself up out of the mess of tools.

"Maybe she has something on her that the ghost is connected to." Dean answers, holding his gun on Dee with one hand and pulling stuff out of her pockets with his other. Anything he finds, he pulls out and tosses out toward Sam. A pack of kleenex, a parking ticket stub, a small wooden horse, a wad of bills, a gas receipt, cough drop...anything and everything he can get, gets tossed.

Sam started grabbing all the items and putting them into a pile and sprinkling salt on it. Charles was back in a heartbeat. Dean's gun suddenly flies out of his hand and across the room, narrowly missing Sam's head. Sam pulls out the lighter and goes to light the pile of things, but can't get the lighter to catch. Dee tosses Dean into the bunker door and is up in a flash. She grabs him by the throat, holding him to the door. Sam gets out a book of matches and is working on catching them alight. Dee looks over at him and then tosses Dean across the room, into Sam. As the two of them tumble away she yells, "All I want is some fun!"

Unnoticed and forgotten during all of this, Bobby crouches down to the pile Sam had made and torches it with a blowtorch form his work bench. As the flames hit the pile of detritus, Dee lets out a scream. She drops to her knees as a black shadow springs from her chest and burns up in the air.


	20. Every Beginning Has an End

~20~ Every Beginning Has an End  
...

I became aware of three things all at once. My ears were ringing, my chest really hurt, and I was being jostled all around.

"Are you okay?" came a voice from my left.

"First aid kit's in the upstairs hallway bathroom."

"What the hell, Sammy? Here, I'll take her. I'm the one that shot her after all."

After that last bit, I felt myself being picked up off the ground and carried. I open my eyes to see the profile of who I can only assume to be Dean. At least, he looks like the guy pictured in the fake ID's from the trunk of the car and he has short hair. "I think I can walk." I say, suddenly feeling intensely embarrassed.

"S'ok, we're already there." He says and sets me down on what happens to be a bathroom counter. He crouches down and starts pawing through the cabinet below, eventually coming up with a large first aid kit. He pops it open on the other side of the sink and starts digging through it, looking for whatever it is he thinks he needs. I can only imagine what Bobby will say when he sees the mess Dean has made of his first aid kit.

While he's engrossed in his first aid prep, I look down and take stock of why I hurt so much. My t-shirt is ruined. It has several small holes all over the front of it, some of which are already stained with blood. "Holy crap. What happened?"

Dean stands up from his digging and looks at me with a sheepish grin on his face. "I, uh, I shot you."

"You shot me?"

"Yeah, see, you were possessed by a ghost named Chuck and he wasn't playing very nice. Sorry about the t-shirt." As he says this he steps between my knees and reaches for my shirt, making as if to lift it off over my head. My eyes get huge and I grab his hands to stop him. This so isn't happening! This was not how I pictured finally meeting the guys. "Hey." He says. "It's only first aid. Anyway, there ain't nothing there I haven't seen before, sweetheart." He proceeds to bat my hands away, pull off my tee, and toss it into the corner, all with a smarmy grin and a wink.

I look anywhere but at him and what he's doing, turning, I'm sure, three shades of pink. "Now it was just rock salt I hit ya with, but I was pretty close so a few of the rounds broke your skin. Most of them will clean up nice..." His voice trails off as he studies my wounds, crouching down a few times for a closer look. Oh God, this isn't happening. "Looks like a few of these are pretty big chunks. I'll dig those ones out." He says it like it's no big deal.

He got some gauze and some alcohol and started wiping some of the smaller wounds, applying band-aids as he went. "So, you stole my car. Where all have you been in her?" I could see what he was doing, small talk to ease the tension of an embarrassing situation, and I mentally thanked him for it.

"It was my cousin Nicky who had it stolen. The one you beat the crap out of, and, before you defend yourself, he had it coming and I don't hold you accountable in any way. Honestly, though, we didn't know it was stolen. Well, not until much later." I sucked in a breath as he hit a particularly tender spot on my side with the alcohol.

"Sorry. So where'd you go? How did you even know where to go?"

"Well, we've read all the books and..."

"Dammit Chuck." Dean grunts under his breath and I couldn't help but smile. I started telling him all about our trip. When I'm nervous, I tend to babble and babble I did. My voice trailed off after a moment and I became acutely aware of him standing between my knees. I cleared my throat nervously. I went on to tell him about our visit with Missouri and that we had a few stops before Bobby's.

"Huh." Dean set down the gauze and picked up the tweezers. "Ok, now it gets a bit more uncomfortable." Understatement! He got a fresh gauze and dabbed at a spot on my right collar bone. I tipped my head away to give him a better view without my hair being in the way and as I do so, I feel him slip my bra strap off my shoulder. It was his turn for the uncomfortable throat clearing. "It was, uh, covering up part of the wound."

I bite my bottom lip and try not to cry, as I so easily do when I'm in pain. He digs out a chunk of salt and I hear it tap into the sink. He dabs at it a bit more with the gauze and then tapes on a clean piece of gauze over the wound. He pulls my bra strap back up and gently slides it over the bandage. He pauses and looks at me, making sure it's okay. His eyes are the most stunning hazel I've ever seen. I mean, I have hazel eyes, but they are mostly brown and dull. His, though, are mostly green and they catch the light above the sink and literally glow. "You okay?" he asks.

I close my mouth and give a shaky nod of my head, unable to speak. He proceeds to dig a chunk out of my abdomen and bandages it up neatly. My mind is overflowing with thoughts. This man has saved the world and hundreds of people on the side. He faces death on an almost daily basis. What's he get for his trouble? A bunch of rowdy girls stealing his car, his home.

He moves on to the last nasty wound. It happens to be on my left breast, thankfully just above the bra-line. Although, in my mind, that doesn't make it any easier to sit there while he's digging around in my breast with a pair of tweezers. Again I have my head tipped to the side. I turn, though, and study his face that is just inches from my own, as he concentrates on his work. He looks rough and gruff, but his eyes are tender. His eyes tell a different story from what he portrays.

I suddenly have an over whelming desire to kiss his cheek. Not in any romantic way, although that wouldn't be bad. I mean, hell, look at him! But, I just...I lean in to give him a quick peck on the cheek and he must have noticed the movement or whatever, because he turns his head at the last moment and I end up kissing him on the lips. What the hell. I grab the sides of his face and really kiss him.

He stops what he's doing with the tweezers and I suddenly stop and look down, embarrassed. He smirks and goes back to his digging. "What was that for?" he asks.

"Just, uh, an impromptu thank you." I stammer.

"I think you have that backwards. I'm the one that shot you...remember?" He chuckles. It's deep and laced with gravel.

"It's just...you and Sam are real! The stories...they're all real."

"Yeah, don't remind me."

"It's...well...I suddenly have an overwhelming appreciation for my life, such as it is. I mean, the apocalypse was real! Dean, you saved us all! There's a whole world full of people out there, living their lives, completely unaware of how close it all was to being snuffed out and I...I just... Thank you, Dean. Thank you." I snapped my mouth shut, realizing I was babbling on again and tears had come from some hidden well to tumble down my face.

"Wow. Um...You're welcome, I guess. We don't, ah, we don't get a lot of thank you's." He seemed uncomfortable. He wiped the tears from my face with his thumbs and went immediately back to his task. I almost forgot. Dean isn't into the 'chick flick moments'.

"I know you don't." I said and he smirked. "And my one thank you can't even begin to cover it all. OW!"

He holds up his tweezers with a large chunk of salt in them triumphantly. "Got it!" He says with a lopsided grin. Chick flick moment over. He tosses it into the sink and works at putting some antibiotic and a bandage on it. He finishes and steps back, staring at my chest, admiring his handiwork. In the process, making me feel very naked.

"Oh, um..." He bends down and grabs my t-shirt, his fingers going right through it in a few spots. "Your shirt is toast." He shrugs out of his jacket. He's wearing the Winchester standard three layers of clothing and pulls off his plaid button up shirt, bringing himself down to just a black tee. He swings the shirt around my back. "Here put this on...seeing as how Sammy burned all your stuff."

"He what?!"

"Yeah. We'll fill you in." He says, as he starts buttoning up the shirt after I've hauled my arms through the too-long sleeves. I roll the sleeves up so my hands show as he finishes with the buttons. "There. No one will ever notice." I give him my best Sammy bitch face and he laughs.

He backs up a step and I hop down off the counter. I quickly pull him into a hug and whisper another heartfelt thank you into his chest. I love a good hug and Dean doesn't disappoint. I could have stood there all day hugging him, but we both pull away and he leads me out to the living room where a round of laughter pours out. As we enter, I see everyone is seated in random chairs, the couch or on the floor, and they are all holding beers or glasses of water.

"You actually winked at him?" Sam asks incredulously.

Charlie nods at him. "She did." They all laugh again and Cat looks a bit proud of herself.

Dean pulls a chair in from the kitchen for me and then sits down on the floor beside me. Sammi hands me a glass of water with a silly grin on her face, El raises an eyebrow at me, and my blush deepens. "So, I hear some feminine charm got these ladies out of getting busted..." Dean says and they start all over, regaling the boys and Bobby with our many adventures.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Who knows what further adventures the Flannel Five will find themselves in...I want to thank my IFIE ho's for all their encouragement and support! Without you guys, I may have stopped writing after my first fic and The Flannel Five would never have seen the light of day! Hope you all enjoyed this crazy trip, please drop a review and let me know what you thought! In the immortal words of Charlie Bradbury "Peace out, Bitches!"
> 
> A Poem From Cat:
> 
> And here's to the first road trip  
> of the flannel five  
> we made it to Bobby's  
> all in one piece and mostly alive!
> 
> We followed our boys path  
> from town to town  
> Eating at diners  
> and poking all around
> 
> We cried, we laughed  
> and drove a stolen car  
> truth be told  
> We made it pretty far.
> 
> And here we sit  
> With Sam and Dean  
> Spinning yarns  
> And wishing it never Fin


End file.
